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Southern flounderClosedSpecies here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Florida pompano71
- Spanish mackerel67
- Common snook66
- Red drum64
- Spotted seatrout63
- Black drum59
- King mackerel59
- Sheepshead56
- Gray snapper55
- Gray triggerfish54
- Red grouper54
- Atlantic croaker35
- Atlantic tarpon35
- Cobia35
- Crevalle jack35
- Permit35
- Gag grouper20
- Greater amberjack20
- Red snapper20
- Southern flounder20
Best score today · 6 PM · Southern flounder
- Now
- 207 AM EST
- Best window
- 5-8 PMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing2.4 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 10 · 1 PM
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
90Tide: FloodingCurrent: 0.7 kn floodWind & pressure
ECMWF
98Wind: 4 kt NNEPressure: RisingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
45Seas over the limit · capped at 30Water temp: 78°F, primeLight: Bright sunSolunar: Major periodSeas: 3.2 ftSeason & habitat · Southern flounder
Species seasonality
75Closed season · capped at 20Season: PeakHabitat: Poor fitDepth: In range
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)
Southern flounder
Closed- Daily limit
- No retention
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Not published
- Season
- Oct 15 to Nov 30, 2026
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Changes
- Retention open from Dec 1
- Other
- Annual fall closure in state and federal waters.
From FWC Recreational Regulations: Flounder, 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)
- Spanish mackerel Retention open (15 per day)
- Spot Retention open
- Spotted seatrout Retention open (3 per day)
- 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 Southern flounder is best here
Peak season for Southern flounder · 2 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 seasonSouthern flounder
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 Florida pompano, Spanish mackerel and common snook. It is peak season now for Florida pompano, Spanish mackerel, red drum and spotted seatrout, and shoulder season for common snook, black drum, king mackerel and sheepshead. Florida pompano peak from March through May and from October through November. Spanish mackerel peak from April through May and from October through November. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through October.
Tackle & technique
- Southern flounder
- Flounder lie half buried on soft bottom along marsh edges, creek mouths, dock pilings and the sandy sides of passes, usually in 1 to 15 feet of water. Drag a mud minnow or finger mullet on a Carolina rig, or bump a soft plastic slowly along the bottom, and give the fish a few seconds before setting the hook. In fall the adults stack up at passes and jetties on their way offshore, and many anglers gig them at night in knee-deep water.
- 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.
- 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.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Clearwater Pass84
Channel · 3.3 mi
Top: Spanish mackerelPeak season- Spanish mackerel 84
- Common snook 81
- Spotted seatrout 78
4 kt NNEL 12:30 PM · 0.5 ftH 7:42 PM · 2.2 ft
- Point Pleasant74
Cape · 1.2 mi
Top: Spanish mackerelPeak season- Spanish mackerel 74
- Florida pompano 73
- Common snook 72
4 kt NNEL 1:20 PM · 0.4 ftH 8:10 PM · 2.0 ft
- Howard Point74
Cape · 1.2 mi
Top: Spanish mackerelPeak season- Spanish mackerel 74
- Florida pompano 73
- Common snook 72
4 kt NNEL 1:20 PM · 0.4 ftH 8:10 PM · 2.0 ft
- McKay Point71
Cape · 1.2 mi
Top: Florida pompanoPeak season- Florida pompano 71
- Spanish mackerel 67
- Common snook 66
4 kt NNEL 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.