UTERJanuary
Sailfish season outside; snook at the inlets; bones on warm afternoons
Snook in the inlets and under the bridges on the outgoing; bonefish on the bay flats only on warm afternoons; kings on the reef edge.
Homestead to Fort Lauderdale
Biscayne Bay fishing
What's biting in Biscayne Bay in October: tarpon, permit and snook at their peak, with sailfish, cobia and king mackerel around too. Fish Scouter's season calendar follows 30 fish here month by month, from Homestead to Fort Lauderdale.
Mullet run peak: snook, tarpon, jacks on every inlet and beach
Biscayne Bay's grass flats and the finger channels between them, the bayside mangrove shorelines of the national park, the inlets (Government Cut, Haulover, Port Everglades), and the reef line within a couple of miles of the beach.
HomesteadKey BiscayneMiamiHauloverFort Lauderdale
Updated
Now · October
Mullet run peak: snook, tarpon, jacks on every inlet and beach
The best beach fishing of the year — follow the mullet schools. Bones and permit on the flats; kings begin to return nearshore.
SnookTarponJack crevalleBonefishPermitKing mackerel
This month here
From the season calendar, best firstPeakPeakPeakPeakPeakPeakPeakPeakPeakPeakPeakPeakArrivingAroundAroundAroundAroundAroundAroundAroundAroundAroundAroundAroundAroundAroundAround
Tarpon
Mullet run peak in Dade and Broward: fish on every inlet and beach on the bait.
Permit
Snook
Mullet run peak.
Bonefish
Jack crevalle
Mullet run blitzes on the beach.
Ladyfish
Striped mullet
The run arrives in Dade and Broward — the peak is October.
Black grouper
Wahoo
Blackfin tuna
Little tunny (bonito)
Bull shark
Sailfish
Cobia
King mackerel
Spanish mackerel
Mangrove snapper
Goliath grouper
Yellowtail snapper
Cero mackerel
Great barracuda
Mutton snapper
Cubera snapper
Mahi-mahi (dolphin)
Swordfish
Blacktip shark
Lemon shark
The water
The tide here
Semidiurnal, 2–3 ft
Two full tides a day, on schedule. Government Cut, Haulover and Port Everglades run hard; the bay flats follow with a lag.
Snook
Slot 28–32" · open Feb 1 – May 31 and Sep 1 – Dec 14
One per person with a snook permit. Southeast region: the east-coast calendar. Check MyFWC for the rule of the day.
Structure that matters
Grass flatChannel edgePass / inletBridgeDock / pilingsArtificial reefWreckBeach / surf
After a cold front
Bonefish and permit leave the flats for the channels; snook stack in the inlets and under the bridges; the nearshore wrecks hold cobia and kings. The Gulf Stream keeps this water warmer than anywhere on the Gulf side.
Month by month
What's happening, and what to throwFebruary
Snook opens; kings and cobia nearshore; the flats reload between fronts
Snook harvest opens the 1st — the inlets and bridges. Cobia and kings on the wrecks; bonefish and permit on the flats when the water tops 72.
March
Tarpon arrive at the inlets; permit and bonefish on the flats
Tarpon at Government Cut and Haulover on the night tides; permit tail on the bay flats; bones on the oceanside of Key Biscayne.
April
Peak tarpon at the inlets and bridges; the flats are full
The Miami tarpon run — the inlets, the bay bridges and the beach at dawn. Permit on the flats and the wrecks.
May
Tarpon continue; snook to the inlets to spawn; permit on the wrecks
Snook stage at the inlets (harvest closes the 31st); tarpon still in the cuts; permit spawn on the nearshore wrecks.
June
Beach and inlet snook at dawn; snapper spawn on the reef
Snook in the surf and the inlet on the first light; mangrove snapper thick on the reef and the bridges; bonefish on the oceanside flats early.
July
Summer: snook, snapper and bones before the heat
Fish the first two hours of light: snook on the beach, bonefish on the flats; then the reef and the bridges for snapper.
August
Bonefish and permit peak on the flats; snook stack at the inlets
The best flats month of the summer for bones and permit; snook in the inlets on the night outgoing.
September
Snook reopens; the mullet run starts on the beach
Snook harvest reopens the 1st, and the fall mullet run brings snook, tarpon and jacks to the beach and the inlets. Bones on the higher fall tides.
October · now
Mullet run peak: snook, tarpon, jacks on every inlet and beach
The best beach fishing of the year — follow the mullet schools. Bones and permit on the flats; kings begin to return nearshore.
November
Sailfish begin; bones on the fall tides; snook at the inlets
Bonefish on the oceanside flats on the big fall tides; snook in the inlets; kings and the first cobia on the wrecks.
December
Snook closes mid-month; winter reef and inlet pattern
Last snook harvest to the 14th. Kings and cobia on the wrecks, snapper on the reef, bones only on the warm afternoons.
Fish guides for Biscayne Bay
When, where and what to use, fish by fishBonefishCobiaCubera snapperGoliath grouperJack crevalleKing mackerelMahi-mahi (dolphin)Mangrove snapperMutton snapperPermitPompanoSailfishSheepsheadSnookSpanish mackerelStriped mulletSwordfishTarponYellowtail snapper
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