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Spotted seatroutRetention openSpecies here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Spanish mackerel69
- Common snook68
- Spotted seatrout67
- Red drum66
- King mackerel63
- Black drum62
- Sheepshead61
- Florida pompano60
- Gray snapper59
- Gray triggerfish59
- Red grouper59
- Atlantic croaker35
- Atlantic tarpon35
- Cobia35
- Crevalle jack35
- Permit35
- Gag grouper20
- Greater amberjack20
- Red snapper20
- Southern flounder20
Best score today · 6 PM · Spotted seatrout
- Now
- 679 AM EST
- Best window
- 6-8 PMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing1.8 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
Tuesday, Nov 3 · 7 PM
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
93Tide: FloodingCurrent: 0.6 kn floodWind & pressure
ECMWF
76Wind: 4 kt ENEPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
89Water temp: 76°F, primeLight: DuskSolunar: Near a majorSeas: 0.5 ftSeason & habitat · Spotted seatrout
Species seasonality
75Season: PeakHabitat: Poor fitDepth: In range
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)
Spotted seatrout
Retention open- Daily limit
- 3 per day
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Slot 15 to 19 in, total length. One fish over 19 inches per vessel, or per person when fishing from shore, counted in the bag limit.
- Season
- No closed season on file
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Other
- Must stay whole until landed ashore. For-hire captain and crew may not keep a bag limit. Hook and line or cast net only. No multiple hooks with natural bait. No snatching. Open year-round. Regional rules apply in inland, state and adjacent federal waters. New regional rules took effect April 1, 2026.
From FWC Recreational Regulations: Spotted Seatrout, 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))
- Sheepshead Retention open (8 per day)
- Snook Retention open (1 per day)
- Southern flounder Closed (No retention)
- Spanish mackerel Retention open (15 per day)
- Spot Retention open
- 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 Spotted seatrout is best here
Peak season for Spotted seatrout · 4 more weeks at peak
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Shell Point
- Depth
- 1-7 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Point · Inner · ProtectedPoint · flat bottom
- Season
- Peak seasonSpotted seatrout
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 Spanish mackerel, common snook and spotted seatrout. It is peak season now for Spanish mackerel, spotted seatrout, red drum and Florida pompano, and shoulder season for common snook, king mackerel, black drum and sheepshead. Spanish mackerel peak from April through May and from October through November. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through October. Spotted seatrout peak from March through May and from October through November.
Tackle & technique
- Spotted seatrout
- Trout hold over grass beds and sandy potholes in 2 to 8 feet of water most of the year and slide into channels, deep creek bends and canals during cold snaps. A live shrimp under a slip or popping cork, a paddle tail on a light jighead, or a topwater walked at first light covers most situations. Keep the drag light because their mouths tear easily.
- 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.
- 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 Pass84
Channel · 3.3 mi
Top: Spanish mackerelPeak season- Spanish mackerel 84
- Common snook 80
- Spotted seatrout 78
6 kt EL 12:30 PM · 0.5 ftH 7:42 PM · 2.2 ft
- Point Pleasant75
Cape · 1.2 mi
Top: Spanish mackerelPeak season- Spanish mackerel 75
- Common snook 72
- Red drum 72
6 kt EL 1:20 PM · 0.4 ftH 8:10 PM · 2.0 ft
- Howard Point75
Cape · 1.2 mi
Top: Spanish mackerelPeak season- Spanish mackerel 75
- Common snook 72
- Red drum 72
6 kt EL 1:20 PM · 0.4 ftH 8:10 PM · 2.0 ft
- McKay Point69
Cape · 1.2 mi
Top: Spanish mackerelPeak season- Spanish mackerel 69
- Common snook 68
- Spotted seatrout 67
6 kt EL 2:02 PM · 0.4 ftH 9:01 PM · 2.0 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.