Barometric pressure

[FarmerDave]

If you are talking about geomagnetic storm which is caused by increased solar activity, I think that has nothing to do with thunderstorms.

But I could be wrong.

That said... I think it is likely that geomagnetic storms would have an effect on fish, some species more than others. For example, I think shark would be effected quite a bit because the rely on mag field for navigation as well as electric fields to locate prey.

I'd also imagine that any organism that uses the earths mag field for navigation would be very sensitive to this.

No idea how this would effect trout. My guess would be not much when it comes to fishing.

 

[gulfgreyhound]

P1v1t1,=p2v2t2 ? Adding pressure does affect fishing as I’ve seen fish turn on as a barometer dropped then stop or slow as it rose. GG

 

[pcray1231]

Geo-magnetic storms, at the surface of the earth, are mainly magnetic, not electric. Magnetic fields can induce some electric currents. It's a tiny effect but it adds up in very long wires, so there's some danger to the electric grid. But in an animal? I doubt it from an electrical standpoint. In outer space there's more of an electrical and radiation component, so satellites and communications face a huge risk.

The magnetic aspect, though, as FD says, could mess with some migrating animals "navigation system", which isn't well understood. There are those that think mass beachings of whales, for instance, is based on solar storms and the magnetic effects on earth. But lots of animals migrate and any of them may or may not use magnetic fields. So yeah, I could see it. From butterflies and bees to whales and everything in between. Which ones are most effected? I dunno. Can rest assured that affects here are natural though, there's plenty of natural variation in Earth's magnetic field but to our knowledge humans haven't messed it up.

Thunderstorms are not related to geo-magnetic storms. They occur in different levels of our atmosphere. But yeah, if lightning hits a fish, it's going to affect it!

 

[FarmerDave]

gulfgreyhound wrote:

Adding pressure does affect fishing as I’ve seen fish turn on as a barometer dropped then stop or slow as it rose. GG

This has also been my observation as well when lake fishing, but if I am reading those links right, the swim bladder argument suggests it should be the other way around.

 

[Prospector]

Jay Thurston, authored a few fly fishing books, kept records for over 34 years and he noted 2 things which touch on this topic. This is an observation and not scientific.

1) As the cold front approaches, when clouds appear and the air temperature is stable or rising, you can have excellent fishing.

2) Trout will not feed during a thunderstorm.  So, if you hear thunder, immediately leave the stream and seek shelter in a vehicle or building.

 

[RLeep2]

Franklin sez: >>Three years ago I would have completely agreed with Pat. Then came Meniere's.>>

That's interesting... I was diagnosed with binaural Meniere's in 1982. As is often the case with Meniere's, it was active and a primary issue for a couple years, then went into a remission of sorts ever since. This being the case, other than keeping a loose watch on my sodium intake, I don't pay much attention to it or do much for it any more. It's already done pretty much all the damage it is going to do to my hearing and vestibular functions.

I never considered the idea that there might be a link between air pressure and Meniere's episodes. Certainly, at the time, nobody was saying anything of the kind.

But the connection certainly makes sense...

 

[flyflicker]

Thanks for the thoughts forum. I used the wrong terminology and was not referring to solar flares, space stuff.

What got me thinking about the electrical factor of weather fronts is we have lightning strike indicators for construction workers. They can detect a strike tens of miles away.

I was thinking the atmospheric and ground response may be perceptible to animals (inc. trout) from a distance ahead of the storm/front.

Thanks again and excellent panel discussion!

 

[pcray1231]

2) Trout will not feed during a thunderstorm. So, if you hear thunder, immediately leave the stream and seek shelter in a vehicle or building.

lol, lol! Oh my.

For safety reasons, I wholeheartedly agree with him. But for fishing? Wow. I've stuck out a few thunderstorms and oh my do the fish turn on like crazy.

During the threatening and first rain drops, dry fly fishing often goes just wild. When heavy rain starts, toss some streamers around and see what happens, lol.

I always had the assumption it was the clouds, humidity/rain keeping bugs on the surface. And once heavy rain starts and the surface is messed up, you've got the combination of a drop in temperature (cold rain during summer), and runoff washing things into the streams en mass, under dark skies. It's like a dinner bell.

Disclaimer: pcray1231 is not responsible for death or injury of any individual who chooses to stand in water with metal studs protruding through their soles and waving a wet graphite stick over their heads during a thunderstorm. lol

 

[franklin]

RLeep2 wrote:
Franklin sez: >>Three years ago I would have completely agreed with Pat. Then came Meniere's.>>

That's interesting... I was diagnosed with binaural Meniere's in 1982. As is often the case with Meniere's, it was active and a primary issue for a couple years, then went into a remission of sorts ever since. This being the case, other than keeping a loose watch on my sodium intake, I don't pay much attention to it or do much for it any more. It's already done pretty much all the damage it is going to do to my hearing and vestibular functions.

I never considered the idea that there might be a link between air pressure and Meniere's episodes. Certainly, at the time, nobody was saying anything of the kind.

But the connection certainly makes sense...

Mine was active for 6 months then dormant for about 18 months. Coincidentally came back while camping at Poe Paddy and fishing Penns. I had a steroid treatment where they inject steroids into the ear. That eliminated the drop attacks but increased my sensitivity to air pressure. A worthwhile tradeoff and I'm now at the point where I can wade safely.

 

[Eccles]

For what it's worth I think pcray and other dissenting voices on here who are skeptical of the importance of atmospheric pressure on fish behavior are right to be skeptical. No peer reviewed scientific paper that has addressed the subject (I went into it in detail for the usual geeky reasons) has demonstrated that responses by fish (movement, feeding etc) to changes in air pressure had anything directly to do with the change in pressure itself. There may have been behavioral responses at the same time there was a change in atmospheric pressure but this could equally have been to do with diminishing light levels, decreasing temperature, increasing wind speed and on and on - not a consequence of pressure itself. Pressure change and subsequent changes in fish behavior are often correlated but that doesn't mean that pressure change is causative of behavioral change (confusing correlation and causation is the abiding error of humanity as someone once said - though I'm sure we can all think of a few other abiding errors.....).
Russ Carpenter speaks cogently about UV vision and other aspects of the way trout perceive their environment in the Orvis podcast but talks in an extremely vague way (using a very time worn and likely apocryphal description of how pressure change affects a fish's swim bladder) about pressure effects. There simply isn't any evidence for it and the physics - as pcray points out - are against it.

 

[mushumatt]

Dropping pressure of a storm rolling in directly impacts feeding/strength of takes from my experiences. The 12-24 hours after a storm rolls through feeding seems to cease. Not to say you can’t catch fish, but the amount of feeding fish are just not there. An average day for me on the savage will yield 15-25 fish depending on the beat I’m fishing. I’ll see those numbers dwindle to 5-10 fish the day after a storm. Takes are very soft, and you have to get your flies right in front of their face.