UPDATEDAUTO-REFRESH 5 MIN
Atlantic tarponCatch & releaseSpecies here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Common snook56
- Atlantic croaker53
- Gray snapper53
- Red drum52
- Atlantic tarpon49
- Southern flounder46
- Black drum43
- Spanish mackerel42
- Crevalle jack41
- Permit41
- Florida pompano39
- Gag grouper38
- Red snapper38
- Spotted seatrout37
- Gray triggerfish35
- Red grouper35
- Cobia33
- King mackerel32
- Greater amberjack31
- Sheepshead30
Best score today · 11 PM · Atlantic tarpon
- Now
- 495 AM EDT
- Best window
- 8 PM-12 AMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Low1.3 ft
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Terra Ceia Bay 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 · 5 AM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
14Tide: Low slackCurrent: SlackWind & pressure
ECMWF
82Wind: 3 kt EPressure: RisingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
82Water temp: 87°F, primeLight: NightSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 0.7 ftSeason & habitat · Atlantic tarpon
Species seasonality
53Season: ShoulderHabitat: Structure unmappedDepth: In rangeRegulations: Catch & release
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)
Tarpon
Catch & release- Daily limit
- No retention
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Not published
- Season
- No closed season on file
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Other
- Tarpon over 40 inches must stay in the water. Special gear rules apply year-round in Boca Grande Pass. Hook and line only. No snagging, snatch hooking, spearing, or multiple hooks with natural bait. Applies in state and federal waters of the Gulf and Atlantic.
From FWC Recreational Regulations: Tarpon, 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))
- 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)
- Wahoo Retention open (2 per day)
Source: FWC · synced yesterday
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Atlantic tarpon is best here
Shoulder season for Atlantic tarpon · 1 more week at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Terra Ceia Bay
- Depth
- 5-10 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Bay · Inner · Semi-exposedBay · flat bottom
- Season
- Shoulder seasonAtlantic tarpon
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 Terra Ceia Bay
Terra Ceia Bay is a bay in Tampa Bay waters, Florida. Depth is 5-10 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads bay, inner water and semi-exposed.
Waterlands scores 20 species here; the best right now are common snook, Atlantic croaker and gray snapper. It is peak season now for common snook, Atlantic croaker, gray snapper and red drum, and shoulder season for Atlantic tarpon, southern flounder, black drum and Spanish mackerel. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through October. Atlantic croaker peak from July through September. Gray snapper peak from June through September.
Tackle & technique
- Atlantic tarpon
- Tarpon roll along beaches, in passes and channels, and under bridges from late spring through fall, and in South Florida some fish stay through winter in warm canals and backcountry rivers. Live crabs, mullet or pinfish drifted through a pass on the outgoing tide, or a fly or soft plastic cast ahead of a rolling string of fish, are the main approaches. Use a long heavy leader, bow to the jumps, and keep big fish in the water for release.
- 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.
- 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.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Flounder Pass60
Channel · 0.8 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 60
- Atlantic croaker 56
- Gray snapper 54
3 kt EH 11:02 AM · 2.4 ftL 6:02 PM · 0.5 ft
- Champlain Bayou55
Bay · 0.9 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 55
- Atlantic croaker 53
- Common snook 52
3 kt EH 11:02 AM · 2.4 ftL 6:02 PM · 0.5 ft
- Beville Point55
Cape · 1.1 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 55
- Red drum 52
- Gray snapper 50
3 kt EL 5:30 AM · 1.3 ftH 11:05 AM · 2.4 ft
- Gus Point52
Cape · 0.5 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 52
- Gray snapper 49
- Atlantic croaker 48
3 kt EH 11:02 AM · 2.4 ftL 6:02 PM · 0.5 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.