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Little tunnyShoulder seasonSpecies here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Atlantic croaker60
- Spot60
- Crevalle jack58
- Red drum58
- King mackerel54
- Gray snapper52
- Summer flounder52
- Red snapper50
- Black drum49
- Black sea bass47
- Gag grouper46
- Gray triggerfish46
- Red grouper46
- Weakfish45
- Greater amberjack41
- Sheepshead41
- Cobia40
- Spanish mackerel40
- Little tunny38
- Florida pompano37
- Atlantic tarpon35
- Bluefish35
- Southern flounder30
- Spotted seatrout30
Best score today · 12 AM · Little tunny
- Now
- 3812 AM EDT
- Best window
- 12-3 AMEbb tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing0.4 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + GFS + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Deer Creek 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
Monday, Oct 5 · 8 AM
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS + Open-Meteo Marine
100Tide: EbbingWind & pressure
ECMWF + GFS
95Wind: 3 kt WNWPressure: RisingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
97Water temp: 73°F, primeLight: DawnSolunar: Major periodSeason & habitat · Little tunny
Species seasonality
65Season: PeakHabitat: Poor fitDepth: Out of range
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
No rule for Little tunny is on file here yet, so its status is unknown, not closed. Confirm limits with NCDMF before you keep a fish.
Source: NCDMF · synced yesterday
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Little tunny is best here
Shoulder season for Little tunny · 1 more week at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Deer Creek
- Depth
- About 1 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Estuary · Inner · ProtectedEstuary · flat bottom
- Season
- Shoulder seasonLittle tunny
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 Deer Creek
Deer Creek is a bay in Alligator River, North Carolina. Depth is about 1 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads estuary, inner water and protected.
Waterlands scores 24 species here; the best right now are Atlantic croaker, spot and crevalle jack. It is peak season now for Atlantic croaker, spot, crevalle jack and red drum, and shoulder season for red snapper, black drum, black sea bass and gag grouper. Atlantic croaker peak from August through October. Spot peak from September through October. Crevalle jack peak from July through October.
Tackle & technique
- Little tunny
- Little tunny travel fast in schools that pin bait against inlets, points, jetties and tide rips, usually within a few miles of shore and often in less than 60 feet. Stay off the school's path, wait for it to surface within range, and cast small metal or epoxy jigs with a fast retrieve. When fish stay down, troll small feathers along bait edges and color changes to find them.
- 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
- Deep Bay60
Bay · 1.5 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 60
- Spot 60
- Crevalle jack 58
14 kt NEL 3:21 AM · 0.4 ftH 8:27 AM · 0.4 ft
- Hooker Gut55
Gut · 0.8 mi
Top: Crevalle jackPeak season- Crevalle jack 55
- King mackerel 51
- Black sea bass 50
17 kt NEL 3:21 AM · 0.4 ftH 8:27 AM · 0.4 ft
- Northeast Prong55
Bay · 1.0 mi
Top: Crevalle jackPeak season- Crevalle jack 55
- King mackerel 51
- Red snapper 47
17 kt NEL 3:21 AM · 0.4 ftH 8:27 AM · 0.4 ft
- Liehue Gut55
Gut · 1.6 mi
Top: Crevalle jackPeak season- Crevalle jack 55
- King mackerel 51
- Black sea bass 49
17 kt NEL 3:21 AM · 0.4 ftH 8:27 AM · 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 NCDMF before you keep a fish.