week of Jul 20 · SST 81–87°F
Gulf of Mexico — this week
SST 81–87°F · Yellowfin Tuna, Mahi-Mahi, Wahoo prime. Live MUR satellite water temperatures (change is vs. seven days ago). Tap any spot on the chart with Fish mode on for a point-by-point breakdown.
Water temperature — south to north
| Spot | Now | Week Δ |
|---|---|---|
| South Padre | 81°F | -0.5°F |
| Galveston | 86°F | +0.5°F |
| Venice | 87°F | +0.5°F |
| Destin | 83°F | -1.1°F |
| Tampa | 86°F | -1.4°F |
Migration line — weekly movement
| Species | Prime water reach | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| Mahi-Mahi | prime water reaches Tampa | steady |
| Yellowfin Tuna | prime water reaches Tampa | steady |
| King Mackerel | prime water reaches Tampa | steady |
| Cobia | prime water reaches Tampa | steady |
| Wahoo | prime water reaches Tampa | steady |
The northernmost sampled spot whose water sits in the species' habitable band, now vs. a week ago. Fish follow temperature — this is the leading edge, not a sighting report.
In season now — temperature fit
| Species | Fit | Prime | Technique |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yellowfin Tuna | 100 | 72–84°F | Troll skirted lures on blue-water edges, rips and canyon walls; chunk at night. |
| Mahi-Mahi | 100 | 75–86°F | Run and gun to weedlines, boards and birds; pitch ballyhoo or jigs. |
| Wahoo | 100 | 73–84°F | High-speed troll (12-16 kt) with weighted lures over ledges and color changes. |
| White Marlin | 100 | 75–82°F | Troll naked ballyhoo with dredges over 50-100 fathom lumps and edges. |
| Blue Marlin | 100 | 77–86°F | Large trolled lures over canyons, seamounts and the continental shelf edge. |
| Red Drum (Redfish) | 100 | 64–82°F | Gold spoons or cut mullet on grass flats, oyster bars and marsh drains. |
| Spotted Seatrout | 100 | 64–84°F | Popping cork with shrimp over grass flats and potholes at first light. |
| Common Snook | 100 | 73–88°F | Live bait or swimbaits on mangrove edges, dock lights and pass current seams. |
| Tarpon | 100 | 75–88°F | Live crabs or mullet drifted through passes and along beaches on moving tide. |
| King Mackerel | 100 | 70–84°F | Slow-troll live bait over reefs, wrecks and bait schools; wire leader. |
| Spanish Mackerel | 100 | 68–82°F | Small shiny spoons cast or trolled fast through surface bait showers. |
| Cobia | 100 | 70–84°F | Sight-cast jigs or eels to fish on buoys, rays, wrecks and channel markers. |
| Greater Amberjack | 100 | 68–82°F | Live bait or big vertical jigs straight over deep wrecks and towers. |
| Red Grouper | 100 | 66–82°F | Squid or pinfish on flat hard-bottom with potholes and ledges. |
Named grounds in Gulf of Mexico
Florida Middle Grounds
Gag Grouper · Red Grouper · Mangrove Snapper
The Midnight Lump — Venice
Yellowfin Tuna · Wahoo · Blackfin Tuna
Flower Garden Banks
Red Snapper · Greater Amberjack · Yellowfin Tuna
Method: habitat-envelope scoring against live NOAA MUR SST at the sampled spots; season windows and envelopes hand-curated from NOAA Fisheries profiles. No catch hearsay — when it says a species fits, it means the water does.
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