Waterlands

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Red grouperRetention open

Cape · Florida

Buccaroo Point

30.46°N · 86.50°W · Cape · Western Choctawhatchee Bay

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Best score today · 7 AM · Red grouper

71/100Great
Now
4812 AM CDT
Best window
4-10 AMFlood tide
Tide now
Flooding0.5 ft ▲

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

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24-hour conditions

Monday, Sep 28 · 6 PM

Time6P
Score49Good
Tide0.5 ft ▲Flooding
Wind2 kn SSEgusts 15 · steady
Air temp79°Warm
WeatherClear13% cloud
Water86°FPersisted

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)

IN EFFECT NOW

Red grouper

Retention open
Daily limit
2 per day (4 Gulf grouper combined)
Possession
Not published
Size
Minimum 20 in, total length
Season
No closed season on file
Annual quota
Not published
Other
Private-vessel anglers need the State Reef Fish Angler designation. Charter captain and crew bag limit is zero in state waters. No more than 4 grouper combined per person per day. Reef fish gear rules apply. Land with head and fins intact. Open year-round in Gulf state waters. Federal waters close February 1 through March 31 seaward of 20 fathoms.

From FWC Recreational Regulations: Groupers, 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 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)
  • Tarpon Catch & release (No retention)
  • Wahoo Retention open (2 per day)

Source: FWC · synced yesterday

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Red grouper is best here

Shoulder season for Red grouper · 27 more weeks at shoulder

Red grouper season by week of the year. Shoulder season for Red grouper · 27 more weeks at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Red grouper in Florida

Spot profile

Buccaroo Point

Depth
2-6 ftNearest water
Structure
Point · Inner · Semi-exposedPoint · flat bottom
Season
Shoulder seasonRed grouper

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 Buccaroo Point

Buccaroo Point is a cape in Western Choctawhatchee Bay, Florida. Depth in the nearest water is 2-6 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads point, inner water and semi-exposed.

Waterlands scores 19 species here; the best right now are red drum, gray snapper and Atlantic croaker. It is peak season now for red drum, gray snapper and Atlantic croaker, and shoulder season for Atlantic tarpon, red snapper, black drum and gag grouper. Red drum peak from September through November. Gray snapper peak from June through September. Atlantic croaker peak from July through September.

Tackle & technique

Red grouper
Red grouper live on low limestone ledges and potholed live bottom across the West Florida Shelf, mostly in 60 to 250 feet. Drift to find hard bottom, then anchor and fish live pinfish, grunts or squid on the bottom with stout conventional tackle. Reel hard right after the bite, because they dive into holes, and use a descending device on fish released from deep water.
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.
Gray snapper
Mangrove snapper hold tight to mangrove roots, bridge pilings, jetties and reef ledges, from a few feet deep inshore to 150 feet offshore. Chum to pull them out of cover, then freeline or lightly weight a live shrimp or pilchard on fluorocarbon leader, since they shy away from heavy line in clear water. The bite improves at dusk and after dark.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Shirk Bayou

    Bay · 2.7 mi

    74
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 74
    • Atlantic croaker 68
    • Gray snapper 63

    2 kt EH 7:58 AM · 0.9 ftL 8:39 PM · 0.4 ft

  • Boggy Bayou

    Bay · 2.9 mi

    74
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 74
    • Atlantic croaker 68
    • Gray snapper 63

    2 kt EH 7:58 AM · 0.9 ftL 8:39 PM · 0.4 ft

  • Boggy Point

    Cape · 2.0 mi

    67
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 67
    • Gray snapper 63
    • Atlantic croaker 62

    2 kt EH 7:58 AM · 0.9 ftL 8:39 PM · 0.4 ft

  • Shirk Point

    Cape · 2.6 mi

    67
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 67
    • Gray snapper 63
    • Atlantic croaker 62

    2 kt EH 8:09 AM · 0.9 ftL 9:10 PM · 0.4 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.