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Florida pompanoRetention openSpecies here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Common snook73
- Gray snapper71
- Red drum70
- Atlantic tarpon68
- Atlantic croaker67
- Spanish mackerel64
- Crevalle jack63
- Permit63
- Gag grouper62
- Southern flounder62
- Florida pompano59
- King mackerel59
- Gray triggerfish58
- Red grouper58
- Red snapper58
- Black drum57
- Greater amberjack57
- Spotted seatrout55
- Cobia53
- Sheepshead35
Best score today · 8 PM · Florida pompano
- Now
- 597 PM EDT
- Best window
- 7-11 PMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Flooding1.0 ft ▲
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Pelican Point 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 · 7 PM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
100Tide: FloodingCurrent: 0.8 kn floodWind & pressure
ECMWF
98Wind: 3 kt NEPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
61Water temp: 87°F, warmLight: DuskSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 0.5 ftSeason & habitat · Florida pompano
Species seasonality
54Season: ShoulderHabitat: Poor fitDepth: In rangeRegulations: Retention open
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)
Florida pompano
Retention open- Daily limit
- 6 per day
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Minimum 11 in, fork length
- Season
- No closed season on file
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Other
- Special rules apply in Biscayne National Park. Hook and line, cast net, and beach or haul seine only. No multiple hooks with natural bait. No snatching. Open year-round in state and federal waters.
From FWC Recreational Regulations: Permit, Florida pompano and African pompano, 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
- 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)
- Snook Retention open (1 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 Florida pompano is best here
Shoulder season for Florida pompano · 1 more week at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Pelican Point
- Depth
- 2-9 ftNearest water
- Structure
- Point · Inner · Semi-exposedPoint · flat bottom
- Season
- Shoulder seasonFlorida pompano
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 Pelican Point
Pelican Point is a cape in Tampa Bay waters, Florida. Depth in the nearest water is 2-9 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads point, inner water and semi-exposed.
Waterlands scores 20 species here; the best right now are common snook, gray snapper and red drum. It is peak season now for common snook, gray snapper, red drum and Atlantic croaker, and shoulder season for Atlantic tarpon, Spanish mackerel, crevalle jack and permit. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through October. Gray snapper peak from June through September. Red drum peak from September through November.
Tackle & technique
- 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.
- 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.
- Gray snapper
- Mangrove snapper hold tight to mangrove roots, bridge pilings, jetties and reef ledges, from a few feet deep inshore to 150 feet offshore. Chum to pull them out of cover, then freeline or lightly weight a live shrimp or pilchard on fluorocarbon leader, since they shy away from heavy line in clear water. The bite improves at dusk and after dark.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Hurricane Pass81
Channel · 1.9 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 81
- Atlantic tarpon 77
- Atlantic croaker 76
3 kt NEH 11:31 PM · 2.6 ftL 4:44 AM · 1.6 ft
- Pelican Cove78
Bay · 0.1 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 78
- Gray snapper 76
- Red drum 74
3 kt NEH 11:31 PM · 2.6 ftL 4:44 AM · 1.6 ft
- Little Bayou77
Bay · 0.9 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 77
- Common snook 73
- Atlantic croaker 72
3 kt NEH 11:31 PM · 2.6 ftL 4:44 AM · 1.6 ft
- Lone Oak Point73
Cape · 2.2 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 73
- Gray snapper 71
- Red drum 70
3 kt NEH 11:31 PM · 2.6 ftL 4:44 AM · 1.6 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.