Know your target

Flounder fishing around Tampa Bay

Flounder lie on sandy or muddy Tampa Bay bottom and ambush prey moving past grass, rocks and pass edges. Slow bottom presentations are practical from shore, with fall into early winter the main window for fish moving toward Gulf passes.

Also known as: Southern flounder, Gulf flounder

Harvest status today: Closed (as of Oct 26, 2026)

Biting, but catch-and-release only until Dec 1

Season: Closed Oct. 15 through Nov. 30 each year; open Dec. 1 to Oct. 14Slot: Minimum 14" total lengthBag: 5 per person per day

Flounder, side view — Photo: U.S. Food and Drug Administration (Reference Standard Sequence Library) · Public domain (U.S. government work) · Source

FWC regulations (Tampa Bay region)

Season	Closed Oct. 15 through Nov. 30 each year; open Dec. 1 to Oct. 14
Slot/size limit	Minimum 14" total length
Bag limit	5 per person per day
Special rules	Applies to Gulf, southern, summer and fringed flounder No multiple hooks with live or dead natural bait for harvest; snatching prohibited

Source: FWC: Flounder · Checked Oct 2026

“Checked” is the dataset reference date.

Regulations change; always confirm with FWC.

Fishing license: who needs one

When they're biting

Best months and baits are general guidance, not official.

JanGood

FebFair

MarFair

AprGood

MayGood

JunGood

JulGood

AugGood

SepPeak

OctPeakThis month

NovPeak

DecPeak

Swipe or scroll the table to see all months. General guidance: 0 = Rare, 1 = Fair, 2 = Good, 3 = Peak. Current month: Oct. Harvest status as of 2026-10-26 (America/New_York), at build time.

Month-by-month shore fishing guide
Species	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	OctThis month	Nov	Dec
Flounder	Good	Fair	Fair	Good	Good	Good	Good	Good	Peak	Peak	Peak	Peak

winter: In early winter, work sandy pass margins slowly as outward-moving fish leave bay feeding areas.
spring: Drag shrimp across sand beside grass flats as fish spread back into inshore feeding habitat.
summer: Cover grass-to-sand boundaries with short jig hops, fishing deeper reachable bottom when the shallows heat up.
fall: Focus on pass-side sand and current breaks with live finger mullet during the fall outward movement.

Top baits

Best months and baits are general guidance, not official.

live

Live shrimp
Mud minnows (killifish)
Finger mullet

cut

Narrow mullet strips
Narrow ladyfish strips

artificial

3 inch scented jerk shad on a 1/4 oz jighead
1/4 oz bucktail jig

Image credits

How to catch

General guidance; adapt tackle to conditions and follow current rules.

Hook: 1/0-2/0 inline circle hook
Leader: 20-25 lb fluorocarbon
Weight: 1/4-3/4 oz sliding egg sinker
Rig: Fish-finder/Carolina rig: place an egg sinker above a swivel and an 18 inch leader so a live minnow travels close to bottom.
Technique: Retrieve a bait rig in short pulls with pauses, feeling for sand rather than lifting it high. When a fish loads the rod, reel steadily into the circle hook instead of giving a long swallowing delay.
Best tide: Moderate outgoing tide along pass margins and draining flats
Time of day: Daylight, when bottom edges are easier to locate

Fan casts to cover new bottom rather than repeating one lane.
Keep the bait moving slowly enough to stay within reach of a buried fish.
Slide a landing net under the fish before lifting it from the water.

Where to go

Habitat suggestions, subject to access. Check each spot's status before going.

Sand Key Park Fishing Piers Clearwater Pass water offers a coastal corridor for working bottom baits during the fall flounder movement. Call ahead
Fort De Soto Gulf Pier Sand near the bay mouth and Egmont channel suits slow minnow presentations near pass water. Open
Fort De Soto Bay Pier Grass flats in calmer water let anglers search the sand boundaries where flounder ambush prey. Call ahead
Courtney Campbell Causeway — Clearwater Trail Shoreline Shallow flats beside causeway rocks give a bottom transition to cover methodically with a light jig. Call ahead
Honeymoon Island State Park — Beaches and Pass Gulf surf and Hurricane Pass on the north end; pompano and whiting run the trough, snook cruise the beach in summer. Open
Fort De Soto Park — North Beach Gulf-facing beach near Pass-a-Grille Channel; pompano and whiting work the first trough, snook cruise the shoreline in summer. Open