UPDATEDAUTO-REFRESH 5 MIN
SheepsheadRetention openSpecies here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Florida pompano75
- Spanish mackerel61
- Black drum56
- Red drum53
- Spotted seatrout53
- Common snook52
- King mackerel49
- Sheepshead48
- Gray triggerfish47
- Red grouper47
- Gray snapper45
- Atlantic croaker35
- Atlantic tarpon35
- Cobia35
- Crevalle jack35
- Permit35
- Gag grouper20
- Greater amberjack20
- Red snapper20
- Southern flounder20
Best score today · 9 AM · Sheepshead
- Now
- 4810 AM EST
- Best window
- 4-11 PMFlood tide
- Tide now
- High1.9 ft
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Middle Ground scores 75+
Checked every morning against the 14-day forecast. Free by push and email.
14-day forecast
Best days to fish
24-hour conditions · rolling from now
Conditions · 10 AM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
37Tide: High slackCurrent: SlackWind & pressure
ECMWF
100Wind: 3 kt SSEPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
77Water temp: 77°F, warmLight: Partly cloudySolunar: Near a majorSeas: 0.3 ftSeason & habitat · Sheepshead
Species seasonality
48Season: ShoulderHabitat: Poor fitDepth: In rangeRegulations: Retention open
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)
Sheepshead
Retention open- Daily limit
- 8 per day
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Minimum 12 in, total length
- Season
- No closed season on file
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Other
- State rules extend into federal waters. Special rules apply in Biscayne National Park. Hook and line, cast net, seine, spear or gig. No multiple hooks with natural bait. No snatching. Open year-round. A 50-fish vessel limit applies in March and April.
From FWC Recreational Regulations: Sheepshead, read Sep 13
Other species here
- Atlantic croaker Retention open
- Black drum Retention open (5 per day)
- Bluefish Retention open (10 per day)
- Bonefish Catch & release (No retention)
- Cobia Retention open (1 per day)
- Crevalle jack Retention open
- Florida pompano Retention open (6 per day)
- Gag grouper Closed (No retention)
- Gray snapper Retention open (5 per day (10 snapper combined))
- Gray triggerfish Retention open (1 per day)
- Greater amberjack Closed (No retention)
- King mackerel Retention open (3 per day)
- Mahi-mahi Retention open (10 per day)
- Permit Retention open (2 per day)
- Red drum Retention open (1 per day)
- Red grouper Retention open (2 per day (4 Gulf grouper combined))
- Red snapper Closed (No retention)
- Sailfish Retention open (1 per day (1 billfish combined))
- Snook Retention open (1 per day)
- Southern flounder Closed (No retention)
- Spanish mackerel Retention open (15 per day)
- Spot Retention open
- Spotted seatrout Retention open (3 per day)
- Summer flounder Closed (No retention)
- Tarpon Catch & release (No retention)
- Wahoo Retention open (2 per day)
Source: FWC · synced yesterday
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Sheepshead is best here
Shoulder season for Sheepshead · 12 more weeks at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Middle Ground
- Depth
- 2-8 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Bar · Inner · Semi-exposedBar · flat bottom
- Season
- Shoulder seasonSheepshead
NOAA NCEI DEM, sampled Sep 13 on a 3.4 m grid. Depths are feet below NAVD 88, not chart datum (MLLW), so they can differ from a chart by a few feet. Not for navigation.
About this spot
Fishing Middle Ground
Middle Ground is a bar in Tampa Bay waters, Florida. Depth is 2-8 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads bar, inner water and semi-exposed.
Waterlands scores 20 species here; the best right now are Florida pompano, Spanish mackerel and black drum. It is peak season now for Florida pompano, Spanish mackerel, red drum and spotted seatrout, and shoulder season for black drum, common snook, king mackerel and sheepshead. Florida pompano peak from March through May and from October through November. Spanish mackerel peak from April through May and from October through November. Black drum peak from February through April.
Tackle & technique
- Sheepshead
- Sheepshead graze barnacles and crabs off pilings, jetty rocks, bridge supports, oyster bars and nearshore reefs, from a few feet deep out to about 50 feet. Drop a fiddler crab, sand flea or piece of shrimp on a small, strong hook straight down next to the structure with just enough weight to hold bottom. The bite is a light tap, so keep the line tight and set the hook fast.
- Florida pompano
- Pompano feed on sand fleas and coquina clams in the trough between the beach and the first sandbar, and around the sandy edges of passes, inlets and bridges. Surf anglers fish a two-hook pompano rig with sand fleas, clams or shrimp, while boat and bridge anglers bounce small jigs along the bottom. The runs follow water temperature, heading north in spring and south in fall as the water cools.
- Spanish mackerel
- Spanish mackerel school along beaches and around inlets, jetties, piers and bridge-tunnel structures, and along tide rips in 5 to 40 feet of water once the water climbs above about 68 degrees F. Troll small spoons or cast metal jigs and retrieve fast, or look for birds diving on bait and cast into the school. FWC calls for a 30 to 60 pound monofilament leader because their teeth cut light line.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Cat Point Bank75
Bar · 0.8 mi
Top: Florida pompanoPeak season- Florida pompano 75
- Spanish mackerel 61
- Black drum 56
3 kt SSEL 3:21 PM · 0.9 ftH 9:51 PM · 2.2 ft
- Maximo Channel69
Channel · 1.3 mi
Top: Florida pompanoPeak season- Florida pompano 69
- Spotted seatrout 62
- Black drum 59
3 kt SSEL 3:21 PM · 0.9 ftH 9:51 PM · 2.2 ft
- Main Channel68
Channel · 0.4 mi
Top: Florida pompanoPeak season- Florida pompano 68
- Spotted seatrout 61
- Black drum 59
3 kt SSEL 3:21 PM · 0.9 ftH 9:51 PM · 2.2 ft
- Pine Key Cutoff68
Channel · 1.1 mi
Top: Florida pompanoPeak season- Florida pompano 68
- Red drum 62
- Spotted seatrout 61
3 kt SSEL 3:21 PM · 0.9 ftH 9:51 PM · 2.2 ft
Scores and forecasts are for planning only and can be wrong. Conditions on the water change fast; check the marine forecast before you go. Regulations change during the season, so confirm limits and closures with FWC before you keep a fish.