Waterlands

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CobiaShoulder season

Bay · New York

Jamaica Bay

40.60°N · 73.84°W · Bay · South Shore Bays from Jones Inlet through Shinnecock Bay

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Best score today · 3 AM · Cobia

68/100Great
Now
303 PM EDT
Best window
5 PM-12 AMEbb tide
Tide now
Flooding2.8 ft ▲

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

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14-day forecast

Best days to fish

Best: Fri · 82

24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 3 PM · now

Time3PNOW
Score30Fair
Tide2.8 ft ▲Flooding
CurrentFlood0.7 kn · toward ENE
Wind11 kn NEgusts 27 · steady
Sea stateRough4.7 ft · 7 s
Air temp65°Mild
WeatherOvercast88% cloud
Water71°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Cobia is on file here yet, so its status is unknown, not closed. Confirm limits with NYSDEC before you keep a fish.

Always check with NYSDEC ↗Fishing license ↗

Source: NYSDEC · synced today

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Cobia is best here

Shoulder season for Cobia · 1 more week at shoulder

Cobia season by week of the year. Shoulder season for Cobia · 1 more week at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • Not here
  • This week

Cobia in New York →

Spot profile

Jamaica Bay

Depth
4-9 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Bay · Inner · Semi-exposedBay · flat bottom
Season
Shoulder seasonCobia

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 Jamaica Bay

Jamaica Bay is a bay in South Shore Bays from Jones Inlet through Shinnecock Bay, New York. Depth is 4-9 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads bay, inner water and semi-exposed.

Waterlands scores 17 species here; the best right now are little tunny, scup and sheepshead. It is peak season now for little tunny, scup, sheepshead and Spanish mackerel, and shoulder season for bluefish, striped bass, black sea bass and king mackerel. Little tunny peak from September through October. Scup peak from June through October. Sheepshead peak from July through September.

Tackle & technique

Cobia
Cobia cruise inlets, beaches, buoys, wrecks and the backs of rays in 5 to 100 feet of water. On calm, sunny days sight-cast bucktails or live eels to fish near the surface. Otherwise anchor up-current of structure, chum, and fish live eels, crabs or menhaden near the bottom.
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.
Scup
Scup school over hard and mixed bottom, rock piles, mussel beds, piers and jetties, usually in 10 to 60 feet of water. Fish a high-low rig with small hooks and squid or clam strips on the bottom, and chum with clam to hold a school under the boat. If nothing bites within 15 minutes, move to the next piece of structure.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

View all on map →
  • Horse Channel

    Channel · 0.9 mi

    62
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 62
    • Summer flounder 61
    • Sheepshead 59

    11 kt NEH 6:27 PM · 5.7 ftL 1:02 AM · 0.4 ft

  • Rulers Bar

    Bar · 0.5 mi

    61
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 61
    • Bluefish 57
    • Spanish mackerel 56

    11 kt NEH 6:27 PM · 5.7 ftL 1:02 AM · 0.4 ft

  • West Broad Channel

    Channel · 0.5 mi

    60
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 60
    • Summer flounder 59
    • Sheepshead 57

    11 kt NEH 6:27 PM · 5.7 ftL 1:02 AM · 0.4 ft

  • The Raunt

    Flat · 0.5 mi

    56
    Top: Summer flounderPeak season
    • Summer flounder 56
    • Little tunny 55
    • Scup 55

    11 kt NEH 6:27 PM · 5.7 ftL 1:02 AM · 0.4 ft

Open in the tide map

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 NYSDEC before you keep a fish.