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Common snookRetention openSpecies here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Atlantic croaker64
- Common snook62
- Atlantic tarpon57
- Gray snapper56
- Red drum56
- Black drum53
- Florida pompano51
- Spanish mackerel51
- Southern flounder49
- Red snapper48
- Gag grouper47
- Permit47
- Gray triggerfish45
- Red grouper45
- Crevalle jack43
- King mackerel42
- Greater amberjack40
- Cobia38
- Spotted seatrout37
- Sheepshead34
Best score today · 8 PM · Common snook
- Now
- 6211 PM EDT
- Best window
- 11 PM-12 AMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Flooding1.3 ft ▲
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Palatine Shoal 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 · 11 PM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
39Tide: FloodingCurrent: SlackWind & pressure
ECMWF
100Wind: 3 kt EPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
74Water temp: 88°F, warmLight: NightSolunar: Major periodSeas: 0.9 ftSeason & habitat · Common snook
Species seasonality
73Season: PeakHabitat: Poor fitDepth: Out of rangeRegulations: Retention open
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)
Snook
Retention open- Daily limit
- 1 per day
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Slot 28 to 33 in, total length
- Season
- Sep 1 to Nov 30, 2026
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Changes
- Catch & release from Dec 1
- Other
- Snook permit and saltwater fishing license required. Must stay whole until landed ashore. For-hire captain and crew may not keep a bag limit. Hook and line only. Closed December 1 through the end of February and May 1 through August 31. Open March 1 through April 30 and September 1 through November 30. Regional rules apply in inland, state and adjacent federal waters.
From FWC Recreational Regulations: Snook, 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 Retention open (2 per day (4 Gulf grouper combined))
- Gray snapper Retention open (5 per day (10 snapper combined))
- Gray triggerfish Retention open (1 per day)
- Greater amberjack Retention open (1 per day)
- 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 Retention open (2 per day (10 snapper combined))
- Sailfish Retention open (1 per day (1 billfish combined))
- Sheepshead Retention open (8 per day)
- Southern flounder Retention open (5 per day)
- Spanish mackerel Retention open (15 per day)
- Spot Retention open
- Spotted seatrout Retention open (3 per day)
- Summer flounder Retention open (5 per day)
- Tarpon Catch & release (No retention)
- Wahoo Retention open (2 per day)
Source: FWC · synced today
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Common snook is best here
Peak season for Common snook · 5 more weeks at peak
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Palatine Shoal
- Depth
- 25-35 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Shoal · Outer · ExposedShoal · flat bottom
- Season
- Peak seasonCommon snook
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 Palatine Shoal
Palatine Shoal is a bar in Tampa Bay waters, Florida. Depth is 25-35 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads shoal, outer water and exposed.
Waterlands scores 20 species here; the best right now are Atlantic croaker, common snook and Atlantic tarpon. It is peak season now for Atlantic croaker, common snook, gray snapper and red drum, and shoulder season for Atlantic tarpon, black drum, Florida pompano and Spanish mackerel. Atlantic croaker peak from July through September. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through October. Atlantic tarpon peak from May through July.
Tackle & technique
- Common snook
- Snook ambush bait around mangrove shorelines, bridge and dock lights, jetties and the mouths of passes and inlets, generally in 2 to 15 feet of water. Fish moving water, especially the outgoing tide, with a live pilchard, pinfish or shrimp, or a jerkbait or soft plastic swum past the structure. In summer they spawn along beaches and inlets, and in winter they crowd into rivers, canals and deep backcountry creeks where the water stays warmer.
- Atlantic croaker
- Croaker feed on mud and sand bottom along channel edges, oyster bars, piers and deeper holes in bays and sounds, mostly in 5 to 30 feet of water. A two-hook bottom rig with small hooks and shrimp, bloodworm or squid catches them from piers, the surf and small boats. Fish the hours around high tide and into the evening.
- Atlantic tarpon
- Tarpon roll along beaches, in passes and channels, and under bridges from late spring through fall, and in South Florida some fish stay through winter in warm canals and backcountry rivers. Live crabs, mullet or pinfish drifted through a pass on the outgoing tide, or a fly or soft plastic cast ahead of a rolling string of fish, are the main approaches. Use a long heavy leader, bow to the jumps, and keep big fish in the water for release.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Egmont Channel75
Channel · 3.6 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 75
- Common snook 69
- Atlantic tarpon 68
3 kt EH 11:58 PM · 1.4 ftL 4:05 AM · 1.0 ft
- Southwest Channel75
Channel · 6.4 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 75
- Common snook 71
- Atlantic tarpon 70
3 kt EH 11:58 PM · 1.4 ftL 4:05 AM · 1.0 ft
- Soldier Hole73
Bay · 7.4 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 73
- Atlantic croaker 72
- Gray snapper 67
3 kt EH 11:48 PM · 1.3 ftL 4:08 AM · 1.0 ft
- De Soto Point69
Cape · 7.5 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 69
- Atlantic croaker 67
- Gray snapper 63
3 kt EH 11:48 PM · 1.3 ftL 4:08 AM · 1.0 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.