What happens to the bite when the temperature drops?

Zingerman · **Joined:** Mon Nov 11, 2013 4:29 pm **Posts:** 38

Hi all, I have been enjoying your posts so far this year and have a question. I would like to hear from the ice fishing veterans how they see a big drop in temperature affecting the eye bite. This week we are getting hit with another artic air mass moving into southern Ontario. Does a big plunge in temperature tend to turn the bite on? turn it off? Make no difference? What 's your experience and do you change your style of fishing to match this weather change. Cheers.

TrophyHunter · **Posted:** Mon Jan 20, 2014 12:01 pm

Stay home , knit a sweater :lol:

seriously it tends to slow things down until it stabalizes , but on that note you can't catch them from a couch

Little Hole · **Joined:** Sat Jan 05, 2013 10:34 pm **Posts:** 104

I agree. Over the years I have found that any change in weather hurts the bite. Stable weather = good bite. Drop in temp or increase in temp = bad. Doesn't mean you wont catch fish, just my general observation.

By the way, this doesn't hold true for open water. I have had some very good fishing just immediately before a storm front. I mean immediately, like, you can see the storm coming and the bite turns on big time for about an hour then just dies after the storm has gone through.

I suspect its all related to air pressure.

wounded · **Posted:** Mon Jan 20, 2014 1:33 pm

I read an article yesterday that the pressure affects the fish. Low pressure means slow fishing. The low pressure affects the swim bladder in the fish. This causes them to move to deeper water to feel more comfortable. Apparently, as written in the arcticle, they feel bloated and will not eat. How the hell they deterimined that the fish feels bloated is beyond me!
Here is the link to the article.
http://www.thefishingnut.com/articles/barometer.html

nwillz · **Posted:** Mon Jan 20, 2014 2:00 pm

Last time it was -25 I caught 9 fish and lost 2 fish. The fish I caught were loaded with Dace. Then next time it was a great morning and -3 and I marked tons but could not convince them to bite. I do not think temperature affects it to much, but pressure, I am trying to do a log to see if that what turns them on and off.

><>J · **Posted:** Mon Jan 20, 2014 5:20 pm

wounded wrote:

I read an article yesterday that the pressure affects the fish. Low pressure means slow fishing. The low pressure affects the swim bladder in the fish. This causes them to move to deeper water to feel more comfortable. Apparently, as written in the arcticle, they feel bloated and will not eat. How the hell they deterimined that the fish feels bloated is beyond me!
Here is the link to the article.
http://www.thefishingnut.com/articles/barometer.html

Hey - some website took my name!

When temps drops, it limits wanting to move around to find the fish, preferring to stay in nice warm hut thus = less success.

tyler0420 · **Joined:** Thu Jan 09, 2014 2:09 pm **Posts:** 4

So when the temp jumps up warmer is the fishing turned off for a bit also.

Grizzly · **Posted:** Mon Jan 20, 2014 7:00 pm

><>J wrote:

wounded wrote:

I read an article yesterday that the pressure affects the fish. Low pressure means slow fishing. The low pressure affects the swim bladder in the fish. This causes them to move to deeper water to feel more comfortable. Apparently, as written in the arcticle, they feel bloated and will not eat. How the hell they deterimined that the fish feels bloated is beyond me!
Here is the link to the article.
http://www.thefishingnut.com/articles/barometer.html

Hey - some website took my name!

When temps drops, it limits wanting to move around to find the fish, preferring to stay in nice warm hut thus = less success.

Im with this guy lol fish don't feel the air temp unless its killing there eyes use a warm hut when its real cold ive caught some real nice fish when its blistering cold for sure wind is about the only thing that keeps me off the ice lol ok wind, and work

fish tales · **Posted:** Wed Jan 22, 2014 8:07 am

I watch the air pressure alot when im fishing and I find when its around 1005 hpa or lower in to the 900s the fishing is hot any higher then you really have to work for that bite. But once the air pressure stabilizes after two or 3 day at the higher pressures then the bits on. This is just what I have experienced in the last 2 years of watching he air pressure.

Fish tales

wounded · **Posted:** Wed Jan 22, 2014 10:55 am

fish tales wrote:

I watch the air pressure alot when im fishing and I find when its around 1005 hpa or lower in to the 900s the fishing is hot any higher then you really have to work for that bite. But once the air pressure stabilizes after two or 3 day at the higher pressures then the bits on. This is just what I have experienced in the last 2 years of watching he air pressure.

Fish tales

I'm guessing here, but the bite should be on today. Sunday was a crap bite, pressure was 100.4 kpa. Monday was up to 102 kpa, nothing bitting, last night was 102 kpa and I got a nice 4 lbr that slammed the lure. It also had a perch or a shinner in its gut. Today is still 102 but falling so if my theory is correct, it should be a good night!!

Consigliere · **Joined:** Tue Mar 13, 2012 12:32 am **Posts:** 62

Temp drop = cold front. Cold fronts push the fish to the deeper/deepest areas of the structure they are on. Fish become less active and daily movements may only be fish becoming active in place, they may not move shallower. Slower speed control is required to entice a bite. Maybe even 0 speed is required. As many noted, as the weather stabilizes fish become more active, daily movements are shallower and for longer periods of time and fish will probably not return all the way to the deepest waters during inactive periods.

The high skies that follow a cold front and the unstable water temperatures are what drive the fish behavior. Water and light conditions are the factors. Pressure has nothing to do with it.

These are all fishing facts explained by Buck Perry many years ago.

DRILLIN N CHILLIN · **Posted:** Wed Jan 22, 2014 2:14 pm

Someone should do a study on this topic. What affects the fishing most. Sure would save me a lot of time and fuel.lol.

StrikerBite · **Joined:** Sat Jan 05, 2013 4:14 pm **Posts:** 50

anyone have a website that tracks Barometric pressure over a period of time for a specific area?

TintWizard · **Joined:** Sun Jan 17, 2010 9:33 am **Posts:** 359

StrikerBite wrote:

anyone have a website that tracks Barometric pressure over a period of time for a specific area?

Yes , it's called the Weather Network lol

Grizzly · **Posted:** Wed Jan 22, 2014 5:51 pm

http://climate.weather.gc.ca/index_e.html

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What happens to the bite when the temperature drops?

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