The grounds · 180 ft · banks, ledges and wrecks

Blackfin Tuna

Thunnus atlanticus. Prime water reaches Tampa in Gulf of Mexico right now (86°F at the surface). Fish it 16–181 ft down — that is where 85–77°F water sits off Tampa.

Blackfin Tuna identification illustration
LaneThe grounds · 30 fa (180 ft)
Depth it holds131–984 ft
Prime water72–84°F (workable 72–89°F)
Holds in the column16–262 ft down below the surface, over 131–984 ft of water
Judged onsurface temperature (NASA MUR satellite)
Structureprefers humps, wrecks and shrimp-boat culling grounds

The water column off Tampa

0 ft91 ft181 ft165 ft of workable water16–181 ft · 85–77°F

The strip is the water itself, coloured by temperature from the surface down to the 181 ft surveyed bottom at that spot — one band per RTOFS model level. The outlined stretch is where Blackfin Tuna's temperature band (72–89°F) and the depth it holds actually overlap. That thickness is the number that matters: it is how much water you can work, not just whether the spot is warm enough somewhere. One model cycle, not a weekly archive — this holds still while the surface map scrubs.

How it's fished

Small jigs or live pilchards over humps at dawn; chum behind shrimpers.

Region by region — right now

RegionSeasonPrime waterTempFish it atMonths
Florida Keys off-season reaches Islamorada 87°F 16–176 ft
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
Gulf of Mexico in season reaches Tampa 86°F 16–181 ft
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Southeast Atlantic in season reaches Cape Hatteras 83°F 16–179 ft
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
"Fish it at" is where this species' temperature band and its holding depth overlap in the water column, from the RTOFS profile (13 levels, 0–300 m) — the depth to actually put a bait, not just the place. "Prime water" is the furthest sampled station on the 30-fathom lane whose surface temperature sits inside this species' band. It is water, not a sighting report.
Charted grounds on the 30-fathom lane
Flower Garden Banks