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Spanish mackerelShoulder seasonSpecies here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Atlantic croaker70
- Spot70
- Florida pompano63
- King mackerel62
- Crevalle jack60
- Atlantic tarpon56
- Gray snapper55
- Red drum55
- Summer flounder53
- Spanish mackerel51
- Spotted seatrout50
- Black drum49
- Southern flounder49
- Gray triggerfish48
- Red snapper48
- Black sea bass47
- Gag grouper47
- Little tunny47
- Red grouper46
- Sheepshead45
- Greater amberjack42
- Weakfish42
- Cobia41
- Bluefish35
Best score today · 6 AM · Spanish mackerel
- Now
- 516 PM EDT
- Best window
- 6-11 PMEbb tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing2.2 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Pamlico 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
43Tide: EbbingCurrent: 0.2 knWind & pressure
ECMWF
67Wind: 13 kt NEPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
80Water temp: 80°F, primeLight: DuskSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 2.6 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
Pamlico Sound
- Depth
- About 20 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 Pamlico Sound
Pamlico Sound is a bay in Pamlico Sound, North Carolina. Depth is about 20 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 Florida pompano. 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 gray triggerfish. Atlantic croaker peak from August through October. Spot peak from September through October. Florida pompano peak from March through April 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.
- 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
- Gull Rocks77
Bar · 6.2 mi
Top: King mackerelPeak season- King mackerel 77
- Gray snapper 71
- Crevalle jack 68
13 kt NEH 8:21 PM · 0.7 ftL 3:23 AM · 0.4 ft
- Hillerys Cove73
Bay · 8.5 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 73
- Crevalle jack 73
- Spot 73
13 kt NEH 8:21 PM · 0.7 ftL 3:23 AM · 0.4 ft
- Gull Shoal69
Bar · 4.7 mi
Top: King mackerelPeak season- King mackerel 69
- Crevalle jack 68
- Atlantic croaker 67
13 kt NEH 8:21 PM · 0.7 ftL 3:23 AM · 0.4 ft
- Hog Island Shoal68
Bar · 7.3 mi
Top: Crevalle jackPeak season- Crevalle jack 68
- King mackerel 68
- Atlantic croaker 67
13 kt NEH 8:21 PM · 0.7 ftL 3:23 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.