Waterlands

UPDATEDAUTO-REFRESH 5 MIN

Mahi-mahiRetention open

Bay · Florida

Canaveral Bight

28.43°N · 80.56°W · Bay · Volusia-Brevard County Line to Sebastian Inlet 0-20 nm

LOADING MAP

Best score today · 8 AM · Mahi-mahi

79/100Great
Now
455 AM EDT
Best window
5-11 AMEbb tide
Tide now
Flooding3.8 ft ▲

Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine

Notify me when Canaveral Bight scores 75+

Checked every morning against the 14-day forecast. Free by push and email.

Sign in to set an alert

24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 5 AM · now

Time5ANOW
Score45Good
Tide3.8 ft ▲Flooding
Current0.2 knmodeled · toward NNE
Wind2 kn WSWgusts 5 · steady
Sea stateLight chop0.6 ft · 7 s
Air temp74°Warm
WeatherMostly cloudy84% cloud
Water83°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

Atlantic state waters (Nassau through Miami-Dade counties)

IN EFFECT NOW

Mahi-mahi

Retention open
Daily limit
5 per day
Possession
Not published
Size
Minimum 20 in, fork length
Season
No closed season on file
Annual quota
Not published
Other
Captain and crew may not keep a bag limit. Private boats: 5 per person or 30 per vessel, whichever is less. For-hire vessels: 5 per paying customer; no 30-fish cap. Hook and line or spearing.

From FWC Recreational Regulations: Dolphinfish/Mahi-Mahi, read Sep 13

Other species here

  • Atlantic croaker Retention open (50 per day)
  • Black drum Retention open (5 per day)
  • Bluefish Retention open (3 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 (10 per day)
  • Greater amberjack Retention open (1 per day)
  • King mackerel Retention open (2 per day)
  • Permit Retention open (2 per day)
  • Red drum Catch & release (No retention)
  • Red grouper Retention open (3 per day (3 Atlantic grouper and tilefish combined))
  • Red snapper Check regulations
  • 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 (50 per day)
  • Spotted seatrout Retention open (2 per day)
  • Summer flounder Retention open (5 per day)
  • Tarpon Catch & release (No retention)
  • Wahoo Retention open (2 per day)

Source: FWC · synced yesterday

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Mahi-mahi is best here

Shoulder season for Mahi-mahi · 1 more week at shoulder

Mahi-mahi season by week of the year. Shoulder season for Mahi-mahi · 1 more week at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Mahi-mahi in Florida

Spot profile

Canaveral Bight

Depth
20-25 ftSlope
Structure
Bay · Outer · ExposedBay · slope
Season
Shoulder seasonMahi-mahi

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 Canaveral Bight

Canaveral Bight is a bay in Volusia-Brevard County Line to Sebastian Inlet 0-20 nm, Florida. Depth is 20-25 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads bay, outer water and exposed.

Waterlands scores 29 species here; the best right now are Atlantic croaker, spot and common snook. It is peak season now for Atlantic croaker, spot, common snook and Atlantic tarpon, and shoulder season for Florida pompano, weakfish, black drum and red snapper. Atlantic croaker peak from August through October. Spot peak from September through October. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through October.

Tackle & technique

Mahi-mahi
Mahi feed near the surface along weedlines, floating debris, buoys and current edges offshore, in water from the low 70s to the low 80s. Troll ballyhoo or small skirted lures along the weed, and when a school comes up behind the boat keep one hooked fish in the water while you pitch cut bait or jigs to the rest. Look for birds working over weed and flotsam.
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.
Spot
Spot school over mud and sand in bays, tidal creeks and channels and around piers and bridges, generally in less than 25 feet of water. Fish a two-hook bottom rig with small hooks and bits of bloodworm or shrimp, and move until you find a school. In fall the biggest fish run out of the sounds past piers and inlets, and the bite can go all day.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Duck Pond

    Bay · 2.9 mi

    76
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 76
    • Spot 74
    • Atlantic tarpon 67

    2 kt WSWH 5:38 AM · 3.9 ftL 11:57 AM · 0.9 ft

  • Home Point

    Cape · 3.1 mi

    71
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 71
    • Spot 68
    • Atlantic tarpon 67

    2 kt WSWH 5:38 AM · 3.9 ftL 11:57 AM · 0.9 ft

  • Middle Point

    Cape · 3.3 mi

    71
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 71
    • Spot 68
    • Atlantic tarpon 67

    2 kt WSWH 5:38 AM · 3.9 ftL 11:57 AM · 0.9 ft

  • Cactus Point

    Cape · 3.5 mi

    71
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 71
    • Spot 68
    • Atlantic tarpon 67

    2 kt WSWH 5:38 AM · 3.9 ftL 11:57 AM · 0.9 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.