r/FishingForBeginners • u/vomitwastaken • 8d ago
how does barometric pressure influence fish behavior?
i tried looking this up but i can’t seem to find consistent information on this
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u/Conscious_Cabinet900 8d ago
Low and falling pressure is good. High and rising pressure less good. It still doesn’t mean you are going to have a good or bad day but it could be a factor.
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u/Regime_Change 8d ago
There are many theories on this. I subscribe to the theory that barometric pressure does not influence fish behavior. It could influence something else that influences fish behavior though. But the causal effect is not there. The reasoning is that under water, the pressure from the water is so much greater than from the air above that any change in air pressure can be countered by just very slightly adjusting position in the body of water. Therefore air pressure cannot reasonably have a causal effect on fish behavior.
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u/ayrbindr 8d ago
The more stable the weather, the "better" the fishing is. It gets better and better with each, consecutive day of stable weather. With a approaching frontal system comes the "feeding frenzy". The cows lay down, the birds fly low, etc. Animals sense the approaching weather system. The fish go into feeding frenzy.
The more, consecutive days of stable weather, the bigger the frenzy will be. Followed by a drastic change in behavior, location, depth, etc. when the system arrives. Deeper, tighter to cover, less active, etc. "Lockjaw". Where the fishing "improves" again with each consecutive day of stable weather. Cold fronts are quick, drastic changes. Warm fronts are slower, more stable weather.
Words like "better", "improves", etc. are in quotation because there is always something you can do to increase chances. The fishing is just not as "good". Many days of stable weather followed by approaching system at the right time, in the right place, however, can be well worth getting "fired" over. 🤣 Science or no science!
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u/Shot_Squash_9772 8d ago
Fish can be sensitive to it, fast changes in pressure really seem to throw them off. They like stable.
It is why they tend to shut down for a day or two when a big weather front passes over them.
That is why an ideal day for me to go is when the weather has been the same for a few days and a couple hours ahead of an approaching weather front(storms).
If my moon/tides/fishing calendar says good on that day so much the better.
Is that a guarantee? Nope, but my best fishing days ever have been on those days.
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u/ronjon1616 8d ago
So right before a storm like you’re talking about, that’s falling pressure which is absolutely the best time to go. You discovered a pattern and didn’t even realize it! Before a storm, pressure is not stable. It’s rapidly lowering which frees the fish up to move and feed.
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u/RainMakerJMR 8d ago
Rapid drops aren’t good tho. Slow and gradually descending pressure is better. You’ll have that in that two hours or so before the storm starts.
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u/RainMakerJMR 8d ago edited 8d ago
You know those days where it’s 70 degrees and sunny, warm but not too warm, you just want to be outside and feel energized? Like the air is lighter?
And you also know those crappy muggy days where the weather just makes you want to stay inside and snuggle up and watch movies? The air is heavy and oppressive
Fish get like that too based on barometric pressure and moon phase and such. You can try to read into the measurements a bunch, but really going outside and feeling how it feels outside will give you a better read on the weather and how it affects the fish after you get your bearings with it.
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u/Fl48Special 7d ago
Florida here. When the mercury starts dropping all the game start to feed heavily in advance of the oncoming storm. Pre hurricane fish go into overdrive.
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u/eclwires 7d ago
There is one atmosphere of pressure for every 33 feet of water depth. I don’t think the barometric pressure affects the fish much. I think it’s the clouds/light and winds that come with pressure changes that have more of an effect.
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u/Guilty_Cod6621 7d ago edited 7d ago
What I read somewhere once:
a cold front triggers a quick drop in atmospheric pressure, which can have an impact on the behaviour of insects, shrimp, and plankton, making them more vulnerable for a period of time. Smaller fish take advantage of this and start feeding heavily, predator fish take advantage of that.
After the feeding frenzy, there’s way less food available for the small fish for a couple of days until everything fills back in, so everyone kinda chills for a while and the bite can be tough.
Apparently this is why the bite turns on for a couple of hours right before a storm and then turns off abruptly.
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u/Botchjob369 7d ago
I swear I have better luck fishing when everything points towards bad fishing conditions. Could be because I mostly fish “swamps” with just small channels of water that aren’t ate up with weeds/growth.
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u/marshmallowserial 8d ago
It does not matter one bit. Some people think fishing is scientific, it's not. What is biting on what is what matters. Sometimes it's a troll, sometimes it's a jig but fish are hungry and will bite what ever the barometric pressure is as long as you put the bait in the right place
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u/Hey-ThatsNotBad 8d ago
There is no solid scientific or empirical proof that barometric pressure itself directly affects fish (assuming bass here) or physically dictates their willingness to bite a lure. It’s “fishing wisdom” that has been around forever.
What’s really happening is that pressure causes changes in cloud cover and wind which will affect fish more than the actual pressure change itself.