Silvertooth reef complex

Reef (artificial) in Sarasota nearshore waters

Draft - not published. This page is only shown while developing. It stays off the live site until its status is changed to published.

NearshoreUpdated October 11, 2026

Depth
23-33 ft
Access
By boat
Best months
February to May, September to November
Species
Spanish mackerel, King mackerel (kingfish), Mangrove (gray) snapper, Sheepshead, Gag grouper, Red grouper, Cobia

Sarasota's closest and most built-up Gulf reef: about 136 FWC-listed deployments from 1980 to March 2026 in 25 to 33 feet, about 1.8 nautical miles west-southwest of Big Sarasota Pass and 2.9 from New Pass. The material runs from 1980 concrete rubble and old Ringling Bridge decking and pilings to many reef-ball and dome-module sites, including the Ron Lukens Memorial Reef (2024). The Coast Pilot notes three fish havens 1.1 to 2.2 miles off the beach between New and Big Sarasota passes; two older reefs sit close by, the Lido Key reef (23 feet, 1981) and Alan Fisher I-2 (New Pass bridge rubble, 31 feet, 1980).

How to fish it

The first Gulf reef a bay boat can reach on a calm day. Anchor up-current of a module group at a safe distance and fish live sardines for Spanish mackerel and snapper, with a live bait on wire for kingfish in spring and fall. Fish bottom rigs with circle hooks for short grouper and snapper, and shrimp, sand fleas or fiddler crabs for sheepshead from February to April. The deployments spread over a quarter to a third of a nautical mile, so idle the sites until you see fish on the sounder.

Watch out for: You'll cross the Big Pass or New Pass bar on the way out, and both break when the wind opposes the tide. It's a busy reef with anchored boats and divers on weekends, and FWC requires boaters to make reasonable efforts to stay 300 feet from a divers-down flag in open water.
Rules here: State waters, about 7.7 nautical miles inside the 9-mile line. FWC tags three deployments as federal, which looks like a database quirk. Reef fish gear rules and the State Reef Fish Angler designation apply. The rules to check in Sarasota nearshore waters

Wind and waves

Now and the next 48 hours at Silvertooth reef complex

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On the map

Silvertooth reef complex and the places around it

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Position

  • N27° 17.017' W082° 36.000'27.283610, -82.600000

Not for navigation: check it against a current chart before you rely on it.

Places nearby

The closest named places, as the crow flies

Check the rules before you keep a fish. Size limits, bag limits and seasons change, sometimes at short notice. Our "Can you keep it today?" lists give them as of the day we last checked; these are the official pages.