Recreational harvest of snook opens Sept. 1 in most of Florida's 9 management regions
Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC)
The recreational harvest season for snook starts Sept. 1 in all east coast Snook Management Regions (Southeast, Indian River Lagoon and Northeast) and most west coast (Panhandle, Big Bend, Tampa Bay and Sarasota Bay) Snook Management Regions.
The harvest season in the Panhandle, Big Bend, Tampa Bay and Sarasota Bay Snook Management Regions will remain open through Nov. 30.
The harvest season in the Southeast, Indian River Lagoon and Northeast Snook Management Regions will remain open through Dec. 14. This includes all Florida state and inland waters within each management region
The regional management zones are part of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s (FWC) holistic management approach for Florida’s most popular inshore fisheries. This approach uses seven metrics to evaluate the fishery by region, allowing the FWC to be more responsive to local concerns. To learn more, visit MyFWC.com/Snook.
Panhandle
Open season: March 1 – April 30 and Sept. 1 – Nov. 30.
Closed season: Dec. 1 – end of Feb. and May 1 – Aug. 31.
Bag limit: One fish per person per day.
Slot limit: 28–33 inches total length.
Boundaries: The western boundary is the Florida-Alabama border and the region extends to the eastern coastal boundary at 84°20.800ꞌ west longitude in Franklin County near Alligator Point. It does not include all waters of the Ochlockonee Bay, the Ochlockonee River and its tributaries.
Big Bend
Open season: March 1 – April 30 and Sept. 1 – Nov. 30.
Closed season: Dec. 1 – end of Feb. and May 1 – Aug. 31.
Bag limit: One fish per person per day.
Slot limit: 28–33 inches total length.
Boundaries: The western coastal boundary is 84°20.800ꞌ west longitude in Franklin County near Alligator Point. The region extends east and south to Fred Howard Park, near the border of Pasco and Pinellas counties. It includes all waters of the Ochlockonee, Withlacoochee and Anclote rivers and their tributaries.
Tampa Bay
Open season: March 1 – April 30 and Sept. 1 – Nov. 30.
Closed season: Dec. 1 – end of Feb. and May 1 – Aug. 31.
Bag limit: One fish per person per day.
Slot limit: 28–33 inches total length.
Boundaries: The northern coastal boundary is Fred Howard Park, near the border of Pasco and Pinellas counties and the region extends south to State Road 64 in Manatee County. It includes all waters of the Alafia, Braden, Manatee, and Hillsborough rivers and their tributaries. It does not include the waters of Palma Sola Bay and all waters of the Anclote River and its tributaries.
Sarasota Bay
Open season: March 1 – April 30 and Sept. 1 – Nov. 30.
Closed season: Dec. 1 – end of Feb. and May 1 – Aug. 31.
Bag limit: One fish per person per day.
Slot limit: 28–33 inches total length.
Boundaries: The northern coastal boundary is State Road 64 in Manatee County and the region extends south to 27°04.727’ north latitude, near the Venice Municipal Airport. It includes all waters of Palma Sola Bay, Phillippi Creek, Cow Pen Slough Canal and Curry Creek. It does not include the waters of the Braden and Manatee rivers.
Southeast
Open season: Feb. 1 – May 31 and Sept. 1 – Dec. 14.
Closed season: Dec. 15 – Jan. 31 and June 1 – Aug. 31.
Bag limit: One fish per person per day.
Slot limit: 28–32 inches total length.
Boundaries: The northern boundary is the Martin-Palm Beach county line and the region extends south to the Miami-Dade/Monroe county line. Includes all waters of Hillsboro Canal, Miami Canal, North New River Canal, and West Palm Beach Canal, and the Loxahatchee River and its tributaries. Does not include Lake Okeechobee and Everglades National Park.
Indian River Lagoon
Open season: Feb. 1 – May 31 and Sept. 1 – Dec. 14.
Closed season: Dec. 15 – Jan. 31 and June 1 – Aug. 31.
Bag limit: One fish per person per day.
Slot limit: 28–32 inches total length.
Boundaries: The northern coastal boundary is at Lytle Avenue/South Causeway in New Smyrna Beach and the region extends south to the Martin-Palm Beach county line. It includes all waters of the Kissimmee River and Lake Okeechobee. It does not include the waters of Loxahatchee and St. Johns rivers and their tributaries.
Northeast
Open season: Feb. 1 – May 31 and Sept. 1 – Dec. 14.
Closed season: Dec. 15 – Jan. 31 and June 1 – Aug. 31.
Bag limit: One fish per person per day.
Slot limit: 28–32 inches total length.
Boundaries: The northern coastal boundary is at the Florida-Georgia border and the region extends south to the Lytle Avenue/South Causeway in New Smyrna Beach. It includes all waters of the St. Johns River and its tributaries. It does not include the waters of the Withlacoochee and Kissimmee rivers, Cypress Lake, and lakes Hatchineha and Kissimmee.
Snook Regulations
For more information on recreational snook regulations, visit MyFWC.com/Snook. This page includes the snook annual reviews, which provide summaries of key findings from the annual evaluation of management metrics for each region.