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Little tunnyShoulder seasonSpecies here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Atlantic croaker74
- Spot74
- Atlantic tarpon71
- Red drum71
- Southern flounder68
- Crevalle jack66
- Spotted seatrout66
- Summer flounder64
- Black drum63
- Gray snapper63
- King mackerel61
- Weakfish58
- Red snapper57
- Black sea bass54
- Cobia54
- Florida pompano54
- Gray triggerfish53
- Gag grouper52
- Red grouper52
- Sheepshead52
- Spanish mackerel51
- Greater amberjack48
- Little tunny47
- Bluefish35
Best score today · 3 AM · Little tunny
- Now
- 474 AM EDT
- Best window
- 4-10 AMEbb tide
- Tide now
- Flooding1.8 ft ▲
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Sanders 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 · rolling from now
Conditions · 4 AM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS + Open-Meteo Marine
65Tide: FloodingCurrent: 0.2 knWind & pressure
ECMWF
100Wind: 8 kt NNEPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
41Water temp: 80°F, warmLight: NightSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 1.6 ftSeason & habitat · Little tunny
Species seasonality
55Season: ShoulderHabitat: Poor fitDepth: Out of rangeRegulations: no rule on file
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
Sanders Creek
- Depth
- 3-4 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Estuary · Inner · Semi-exposedEstuary · 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 Sanders Creek
Sanders Creek is a bay in Neuse and Bay Rivers, North Carolina. Depth is 3-4 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads estuary, inner water and semi-exposed.
Waterlands scores 24 species here; the best right now are Atlantic croaker, spot and Atlantic tarpon. It is peak season now for Atlantic croaker, spot, Atlantic tarpon and red drum, and shoulder season for black drum, weakfish, red snapper and black sea bass. Atlantic croaker peak from August through October. Spot peak from September through October. Atlantic tarpon peak from July through September.
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
- Bogue Sound75
Bay · 2.1 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 75
- Spot 75
- Red drum 72
8 kt NNEH 7:10 AM · 1.8 ftL 1:45 PM · 0.5 ft
- Taylor Bay74
Bay · 3.2 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 74
- Spot 74
- Red drum 71
8 kt NNEH 5:46 AM · 2.1 ftL 11:48 AM · 0.5 ft
- Sanders Point69
Cape · 2.3 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 69
- Spot 69
- Atlantic tarpon 66
8 kt NNEH 5:46 AM · 2.1 ftL 11:48 AM · 0.5 ft
- Humphrey Point69
Cape · 2.9 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 69
- Spot 69
- Atlantic tarpon 66
8 kt NNEH 5:46 AM · 2.1 ftL 11:48 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 NCDMF before you keep a fish.