How Barometric Pressure Affects Fishing

I was asked recently to explain the effect of weather, and especially barometric pressure, on fishing. I certainly knew that changes in the weather had an effect, but I couldn't explain it. So, it was time to do some research. Here is what I learned.

There is definitely a relationship between barometric pressure and fishing results. In a nutshell, the theory is that dropping air pressure brings on feeding activity, rising pressure turns the fish off feeding, high pressure results in the fish moving to shallower water, and low pressure results in fish moving to deeper water. Just to get your bearings, normal air pressure is 30inHg. A reading of 30.5 is considered very high and 28.5 is considered very low.

The basic premise is that changing air pressure affects the swim bladder of fish. A lower pressure will move a fish to deeper water seeking the higher water pressure on their swim bladder. Theory has it that just before a change from high pressure to low pressure, fish will bite like crazy and then stop biting when the pressure gets low. A rising barometer will cause fish rise back to shallower water.

There is also some merit to the fact that changing barometric pressure also affects clouds, wind, and rain which can all affect your fishing. In summary, high pressure (above 30) will bring fish shallower and they will seek cover from structure. Rising pressure means clearing skys so fish shallower and with bright colors. Falling pressure is the best feeding time. Lower pressure usually means it is cloudy and you need to fish with a deeper running lure and at a slower retrieval speed because fish are more sluggish.

Hopefully this information is helpful; however you should keep some notes as you fish to begin drawing your own conclusions about the weather and barometric pressure.




http://www.fishing-news.us/search/label/fishing%20tips