Florida Keys • Upper and Middle Florida Keys
When do wahoo bite in the Florida Keys?
Wahoo peak November through March on the drop-off and over the humps outside the reef line, in 70-88 F water with the best bite between 74 and 80 F. The bands come from 100 days of observed Keys sea surface temperature, and the daily FishIntel report says where that water sits this morning.
How does FishIntel forecast the best days to catch wahoo?
FishIntel reads NOAA and satellite ocean data, including sea surface temperature breaks and chlorophyll edges, and turns changes near your zone into a plain-English wahoo forecast. See a sample report at fishintel.ai/sample-report.
70-88°F
Best between 74-80°F.
Peaks November to March; summer fish hold deeper. No minimum size and 2 per person (FWC, read 2026-09-30); in federal waters also 2 per person, landed with head and fins intact (SAFMC, read 2026-09-30). Regulations change, so check the current rules for the species you are targeting before treating a rating as a plan.
Confirm current rules before you keep a fish. Official rules: FWC, NOAA Fisheries.
These bands are calibrated for the Florida Keys from 100 days of observed sea surface temperature in this fishery, recorded between 4 April and 27 July 2026, plus local seasonality, and not copied from a generic table. The record starts in April, so the cold ends rest on seasonality rather than measurement.
A band and a season tell you whether wahoo is on the cards this month. They do not tell you where the water is doing something today. A FishIntel report reads the actual sea surface temperature, chlorophyll fronts and current convergence over your own zone every morning, and says which of those edges is worth running to.
FishIntel was co-founded by Captain Kit Carson and Alan Lanham.