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Atlantic croakerRetention openSpecies here · tap to switch
- Best of all64
- Atlantic croaker64
- Gray snapper64
- Common snook62
- Red drum62
- Crevalle jack55
- Spanish mackerel55
- Black drum52
- Southern flounder51
- Florida pompano50
- Spotted seatrout50
- Atlantic tarpon49
- Gag grouper48
- King mackerel48
- Cobia46
- Gray triggerfish46
- Red grouper46
- Red snapper46
- Permit45
- Greater amberjack40
- Sheepshead35
Best score today · 8 AM · Atlantic croaker
- Now
- 647 PM EDT
- Best window
- 7 PM-12 AMDusk
- Tide now
- Low0.2 ft
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Safety Harbor 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
33Tide: Low slackCurrent: SlackWind & pressure
ECMWF
94Wind: 4 kt ENEPressure: FallingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
82Water temp: 86°F, warmLight: DuskSolunar: Major periodSeas: 0.7 ftSeason & habitat · Atlantic croaker
Species seasonality
93Season: PeakHabitat: Usable structureDepth: In rangeRegulations: Retention open
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)
Atlantic croaker
Retention open- Daily limit
- Not published
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Not published
- Season
- No closed season on file
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Other
- 100 pounds per person per day. No minimum size. Open year-round.
From FWC Recreational Regulations: Spot and Atlantic croaker, read Sep 13
Other species here
- 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)
- 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 Atlantic croaker is best here
Peak season for Atlantic croaker · 1 more week at peak
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Safety Harbor
- Depth
- 9-10 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Bay · Inner · ProtectedBay · flat bottom
- Season
- Peak seasonAtlantic croaker
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 Safety Harbor
Safety Harbor is a bay in Tampa Bay waters, Florida. Depth is 9-10 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads bay, inner water and protected.
Waterlands scores 20 species here; the best right now are Atlantic croaker, gray snapper and common snook. It is peak season now for Atlantic croaker, gray snapper, common snook and red drum, and shoulder season for crevalle jack, Spanish mackerel, black drum and southern flounder. Atlantic croaker peak from July through September. Gray snapper peak from June through September. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through October.
Tackle & technique
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Mobbly Bay71
Bay · 1.9 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 71
- Atlantic croaker 63
- Gray snapper 58
4 kt ENEH 9:38 AM · 1.7 ftL 7:18 PM · 0.2 ft
- Boat Bayou71
Bay · 2.1 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 71
- Atlantic croaker 63
- Gray snapper 58
4 kt ENEH 9:38 AM · 1.7 ftL 7:18 PM · 0.2 ft
- Philippe Point67
Cape · 1.0 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 67
- Common snook 62
- Gray snapper 61
4 kt ENEH 8:35 AM · 2.5 ftL 5:51 PM · 0.3 ft
- Booth Point62
Cape · 1.9 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 62
- Gray snapper 58
- Atlantic croaker 57
4 kt ENEH 9:38 AM · 1.7 ftL 7:18 PM · 0.2 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.