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Spanish mackerelShoulder seasonSpecies here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Atlantic croaker64
- Spot64
- King mackerel59
- Florida pompano58
- Crevalle jack57
- Gray snapper51
- Red drum50
- Summer flounder50
- Spanish mackerel47
- Black drum45
- Black sea bass45
- Gray triggerfish45
- Red snapper45
- Gag grouper44
- Red grouper44
- Little tunny43
- Sheepshead42
- Greater amberjack39
- Weakfish38
- Cobia37
- Atlantic tarpon35
- Bluefish35
- Southern flounder30
- Spotted seatrout30
Best score today · 6 AM · Spanish mackerel
- Now
- 476 PM EDT
- Best window
- 6-10 PMEbb tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing3.6 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Albemarle Sound 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 + Open-Meteo Marine
50Tide: EbbingCurrent: 0.2 knWind & pressure
ECMWF
32Wind: 13 kt NEPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
77Water temp: 80°F, primeLight: DuskSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 2.9 ftSeason & habitat · Spanish mackerel
Species seasonality
60Season: ShoulderHabitat: Structure unmappedDepth: In rangeRegulations: no rule on file
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
No rule for Spanish mackerel is on file here yet, so its status is unknown, not closed. Confirm limits with NCDMF before you keep a fish.
Source: NCDMF · synced today
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Spanish mackerel is best here
Shoulder season for Spanish mackerel · 5 more weeks at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Albemarle Sound
- Depth
- About 15 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Bay · Inner · Semi-exposedBay · flat bottom
- Season
- Shoulder 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 Albemarle Sound
Albemarle Sound is a bay in Albemarle Sound, North Carolina. Depth is about 15 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads bay, inner water and semi-exposed.
Waterlands scores 24 species here; the best right now are Atlantic croaker, spot and king mackerel. It is peak season now for Atlantic croaker, spot, king mackerel and crevalle jack, and shoulder season for Florida pompano, Spanish mackerel, black drum and black sea bass. Atlantic croaker peak from August through October. Spot peak from September through October. King mackerel peak in May and from September through October.
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.
- 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
- Sampson Point57
Cape · 3.0 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 57
- Spot 57
- Florida pompano 55
13 kt NEL 11:31 PM · 1.3 ftH 5:38 AM · 3.3 ft
- Pig Point57
Cape · 4.8 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 57
- Spot 57
- Florida pompano 55
13 kt NEL 11:31 PM · 1.3 ftH 5:38 AM · 3.3 ft
- Shellbank Point56
Cape · 4.9 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 56
- Spot 56
- Florida pompano 53
13 kt NEL 11:31 PM · 1.3 ftH 5:38 AM · 3.3 ft
- Long Point56
Cape · 5.0 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 56
- Spot 56
- Florida pompano 53
13 kt NEL 11:31 PM · 1.3 ftH 5:38 AM · 3.3 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 NCDMF before you keep a fish.