Waterlands

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Spanish mackerelRetention open

Cape · Florida

Buccaroo Point

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

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Best score today · 6 AM · Florida pompano

68/100Great
Now
605 PM CST
Best window
5-7 PMEbb tide
Tide now
Ebbing0.4 ft ▼

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

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24-hour conditions

Sunday, Nov 15 · 12 AM

Time12A
Score69Great
Tide0.5 ft ▲Flooding
Wind8 kn SSEgusts 14 · steady
Air temp70°Warm
WeatherClear0% cloud
Water73°FPersisted

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)

IN EFFECT NOW

Spanish mackerel

Retention open
Daily limit
15 per day
Possession
Not published
Size
Minimum 12 in, fork length
Season
No closed season on file
Annual quota
Not published
Other
Beach or haul seine, cast net, hook and line, or spear. Open year-round.

From FWC Recreational Regulations: Spanish Mackerel, 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)
  • Southern flounder Closed (No retention)
  • 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)

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Spanish mackerel is best here

Peak season for Spanish mackerel · 2 more weeks at peak

Spanish mackerel season by week of the year. Peak season for Spanish mackerel · 2 more weeks at peak.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Spanish mackerel in Florida →

Spot profile

Buccaroo Point

Depth
2-6 ftNearest water
Structure
Point · Inner · Semi-exposedPoint · flat bottom
Season
Peak seasonSpanish mackerel

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 Spanish mackerel, king mackerel and Florida pompano. It is peak season now for Spanish mackerel, Florida pompano, red drum and spotted seatrout, and shoulder season for king mackerel, gray triggerfish, red grouper and sheepshead. Spanish mackerel peak from April through May and from October through November. King mackerel peak in May and in October. Florida pompano peak from March through May and from October through November.

Tackle & technique

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.
King mackerel
Kings roam from beaches and pier ends out to reefs, wrecks and ledges in 40 to 200 feet, usually feeding in the upper half of the water column. Slow-troll live menhaden, blue runners or cigar minnows on a light wire stinger rig, or pull spoons and ribbonfish past bait schools. Look for clean green water above 68 F with bait and birds on it.
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.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Boggy Point

    Cape · 2.0 mi

    60
    Top: Spanish mackerelPeak season
    • Spanish mackerel 60
    • King mackerel 55
    • Florida pompano 52

    8 kt SEL 7:39 PM · 0.3 ftH 8:07 AM · 0.6 ft

  • Shirk Bayou

    Bay · 2.7 mi

    60
    Top: Spanish mackerelPeak season
    • Spanish mackerel 60
    • King mackerel 55
    • Florida pompano 52

    8 kt SEL 7:39 PM · 0.3 ftH 8:07 AM · 0.6 ft

  • Boggy Bayou

    Bay · 2.9 mi

    60
    Top: Spanish mackerelPeak season
    • Spanish mackerel 60
    • King mackerel 55
    • Florida pompano 52

    8 kt SEL 7:39 PM · 0.3 ftH 8:07 AM · 0.6 ft

  • Shirk Point

    Cape · 2.6 mi

    58
    Top: Spanish mackerelPeak season
    • Spanish mackerel 58
    • King mackerel 53
    • Florida pompano 52

    8 kt SEL 8:36 PM · 0.4 ftH 7:09 AM · 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.