What's Biting FL
Florida Keys

Bonefish in Florida Keys

Bonefish
Albula vulpes · Photo: Brian Gratwicke, CC BY 2.0

Sight fishing the flats of Biscayne Bay and the Keys with shrimp, crabs or flies. Catch and release only.

Next three days

DayBiteWhy
Sun, Sep 137New Moon feeding boost. Storms possible, fish early and watch the sky. Weak tides
Mon, Sep 147Storms possible, fish early and watch the sky. Weak tides
Tue, Sep 157Storms possible, fish early and watch the sky

Seasonal pattern

Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec

Editorial baseline for Florida. Green months are prime, yellow fair, red slow. Preferred water temperature 72–88°F.

Regulations that apply here

Applies to: state and adjacent federal waters

Species / zoneSeasonSizeBagNotes
Bonefish
Statewide
open now
Open year-round
Catch-And-Release fisheryThe use of a multiple hook in conjunction with live or dead natural bait to harvest or attempt to harvest bonefish is prohibited. Catch-and-release only fishery. Tournament exemption permit eliminated effective Sept. 1, 2013.

Source: FWC, extracted 2026-09-12. Review flags: The page states 'Catch-And-Release fishery' which implies a bag limit of 0 for retention, but does not explicitly state '0' in a numeric format. Interpreted as bag_per_person: 0.; The page mentions 'multiple hook' prohibition but does not define 'multiple hook' or specify if this applies to artificial lures or only natural bait (text says 'in conjunction with live or dead natural bait').

See all Bonefish rules statewide.