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Red snapperRetention openSpecies here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Red drum73
- Common snook64
- Atlantic tarpon63
- Gray snapper62
- Atlantic croaker61
- Permit61
- Southern flounder59
- Black drum57
- Spotted seatrout55
- Gag grouper53
- Spanish mackerel53
- Crevalle jack52
- Gray triggerfish50
- Red grouper50
- Red snapper50
- Florida pompano49
- King mackerel47
- Cobia45
- Greater amberjack45
- Sheepshead35
Best score today · 7 PM · Red snapper
- Now
- 506 PM EDT
- Best window
- 6-11 PMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Flooding0.8 ft ▲
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Southeast Head 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 · 6 PM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
62Tide: FloodingCurrent: SlackWind & pressure
ECMWF
98Wind: 7 kt ENEPressure: FallingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
71Water temp: 87°F, hotLight: DuskSolunar: Near a majorSeas: 0.7 ftSeason & habitat · Red snapper
Species seasonality
43Season: ShoulderHabitat: Poor fitDepth: Out of rangeRegulations: Retention open
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)
Red snapper(private recreational)
Retention open- Daily limit
- 2 per day (10 snapper combined)
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Minimum 16 in, total length
- Season
- Sep 1 to Oct 4, 2026
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Changes
- Closed from Oct 5
- Other
- Applies to private recreational vessels in Florida Gulf state and federal waters, and to for-hire vessels without a federal permit in Gulf state waters only. Charter captain and crew bag limit is zero. Private-vessel anglers need the State Reef Fish Angler designation. Counts toward the 10-snapper aggregate per person per day. Reef fish gear rules apply. Land with head and fins intact. FWC sets this 2026 Gulf private recreational season for both Gulf state waters and Gulf federal waters off Florida.
From FWC Recreational Regulations: Snappers, 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))
- 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 Red snapper is best here
Shoulder season for Red snapper · 32 more weeks at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Southeast Head
- Depth
- 2-4 ftNearest water
- Structure
- Point · Inner · Semi-exposedPoint · flat bottom
- Season
- Shoulder seasonRed snapper
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 Southeast Head
Southeast Head is a cape in Tampa Bay waters, Florida. Depth in the nearest water is 2-4 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads point, inner water and semi-exposed.
Waterlands scores 20 species here; the best right now are red drum, common snook and Atlantic tarpon. It is peak season now for red drum, common snook, gray snapper and Atlantic croaker, and shoulder season for Atlantic tarpon, permit, southern flounder and black drum. Red drum peak from September through November. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through October. Atlantic tarpon peak from May through July.
Tackle & technique
- Red snapper
- Red snapper school over rigs, wrecks, artificial reefs and natural ledges, mostly in 60 to 250 feet. Anchor or drift over the structure, chum, and drop cut or live cigar minnows, sardines or squid on circle hooks, using as little weight as the current allows. Federal rules require circle hooks with natural bait in the Gulf and a descending device or venting tool on board.
- 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
- Hells Half Acre73
Bay · 0.9 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 73
- Atlantic croaker 66
- Common snook 64
7 kt ENEH 5:50 AM · 2.3 ftL 3:33 PM · 0.6 ft
- Clambar Bay73
Bay · 1.1 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 73
- Atlantic croaker 67
- Common snook 64
7 kt ENEH 5:50 AM · 2.3 ftL 3:33 PM · 0.6 ft
- Bishop Harbor69
Bay · 0.3 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 69
- Atlantic croaker 68
- Gray snapper 68
7 kt ENEH 5:50 AM · 2.3 ftL 3:33 PM · 0.6 ft
- Sea Breeze Point64
Cape · 2.4 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 64
- Red drum 64
- Gray snapper 62
7 kt ENEH 5:42 AM · 2.4 ftL 4:06 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.