UPDATEDAUTO-REFRESH 5 MIN
SheepsheadRetention openSpecies here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Red drum65
- Common snook62
- Atlantic croaker61
- Gray snapper61
- Atlantic tarpon54
- Black drum51
- Red snapper49
- Southern flounder49
- Gag grouper47
- Permit47
- Spanish mackerel47
- Spotted seatrout47
- Crevalle jack46
- Gray triggerfish46
- Red grouper46
- Florida pompano44
- King mackerel41
- Cobia40
- Greater amberjack40
- Sheepshead34
Best score today · 8 AM · Sheepshead
- Now
- 3411 PM EDT
- Best window
- 11 PM-12 AMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Flooding1.7 ft ▲
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Shell 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
Monday, Sep 28 · 12 AM
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
100Tide: FloodingCurrent: 0.7 kn floodWind & pressure
ECMWF
100Wind: 3 kt ENEPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
3Water temp: 88°F, hotLight: NightSolunar: Between periodsSeason & habitat · Sheepshead
Species seasonality
31Off season · capped at 35Season: Off seasonHabitat: Poor fitDepth: In range
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 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))
- 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 Sheepshead is best here
Out of season for Sheepshead · shoulder season starts in 2 weeks
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Shell Point
- Depth
- 1-7 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Point · Inner · ProtectedPoint · flat bottom
- Season
- Off 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 Shell Point
Shell Point is a cape in Tampa Bay waters, Florida. Depth is 1-7 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads point, inner water and protected.
Waterlands scores 20 species here; the best right now are red drum, common snook and Atlantic croaker. It is peak season now for red drum, common snook, Atlantic croaker and gray snapper, and shoulder season for Atlantic tarpon, black drum, red snapper and southern flounder. Red drum peak from September through November. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through October. Atlantic croaker peak from July through September.
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.
- Red drum
- Redfish feed on shallow grass flats, oyster bars and marsh edges, often in 1 to 4 feet of water, and drop into channels, deep holes and tidal creeks when the water turns very hot or cold. Work a live shrimp under a popping cork or a soft plastic along the grass line on a rising tide, then fish creek mouths and drains as the tide falls. Bull reds over 30 inches school in the surf, passes and jetties in late summer and fall, where cut mullet or a live crab on the bottom is the standard approach.
- 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
- Clearwater Pass71
Channel · 3.3 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 71
- Common snook 70
- Atlantic croaker 69
4 kt ENEH 4:47 AM · 2.7 ftL 1:59 PM · 0.8 ft
- Point Pleasant66
Cape · 1.2 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 66
- Common snook 62
- Gray snapper 62
4 kt ENEH 5:15 AM · 2.5 ftL 2:49 PM · 0.6 ft
- Howard Point66
Cape · 1.2 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 66
- Common snook 62
- Gray snapper 62
4 kt ENEH 5:15 AM · 2.5 ftL 2:49 PM · 0.6 ft
- McKay Point65
Cape · 1.2 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 65
- Common snook 62
- Atlantic croaker 61
4 kt ENEH 6:06 AM · 2.5 ftL 3:31 PM · 0.6 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.