Question: Affect of sunlight and wild browns

[Underdog]

So fishing some medium size creeks in PA. Dawn till 10:30 seems best with more scattered bites as lunch time approaches. Some fish 15 to 20" I'm not around much in the evening.

But on small, narrow creeks with smaller trout averaging 4 to 8" and with fish in the teens, they bite anytime.....maybe not quite as good in the midday hours, but nonethess can go have fun.

Is this a size of the creek kind of thing? Or are the bigger fish wiser as the sun gets high in the air? Or is a small creek more competitive so they jump on flies quicker? This seems to be said if flies or trout magnets too on spinner.

Just seeking thoughts, theories, philosophies, whatever goes. Thanks

 

[lycoflyfisher]

Size of stream, water temperature, food productivity (water quality), species of trout are likely all factors to consider when comparing streams.

Weather and sun can play a big role. Overcast rainy days can lend to good fishing all day. Flow conditions are also important to consider.

Collectively I am not sure if there is one nest time of day to fish. Unless you are targeting large brown trout, then certainly your odds are better at dawn and dusk.

 

[Prospector]

Food is not as readily available in a small stream so they need to eat every morsel that comes past. In medium creeks you have a tremendous amount of insects and more surface area for terrestrials to plunge to. There are also schools of minnows in different age classes at different depths. The trout have options to feed shallow or deep. Most of the small streams I fish run through hemlock forests which further limit the bugs that fall into to water.

 

[mt_flyfisher]

So fishing some medium size creeks in PA. Dawn till 10:30 seems best with more scattered bites as lunch time approaches. Some fish 15 to 20" I'm not around much in the evening.

But on small, narrow creeks with smaller trout averaging 4 to 8" and with fish in the teens, they bite anytime.....maybe not quite as good in the midday hours, but nonethess can go have fun.

Is this a size of the creek kind of thing? Or are the bigger fish wiser as the sun gets high in the air? Or is a small creek more competitive so they jump on flies quicker? This seems to be said if flies or trout magnets too on spinner.

Just seeking thoughts, theories, philosophies, whatever goes. Thanks

If you are looking for some answers to your original question on the effect of sunlight on brown trout behavior you might consider acquiring the book “The Compleat Brown Trout” by Cecil Heacox. Although it was published nearly 50 years ago, I believe that much of the information in this book is still relevant, and I see they are nearly giving that book away today on EBay (some are under $5.00).

Heacox did postgraduate work at Cornell, worked as a fisheries manager and an aquatic biologist, and ultimately became the Deputy Commissioner of the New York Conservation Department

One chapter in this book, titled “Tropisms”, goes a long way in answering your questions. “Tropism is the tendency of a plant or animal to turn toward or away from a source of physical stimulation such as light, heat and contact.” ”A brown trout’s reaction to light also governs its behavior pattern. Thus, a brown trout is said to be photropic. Bcause Salmo trutta shuns light and prefers dark places, it is negatively phototropic.”

Heacox goes on in this chapter to also describe the brown trout’s other tropisms to such things as stream currents, water temperatures, etc., and relates them to actual fishing situations.

 

[6xAdams(Jones)]

I expect success (or not) depends more on the entire combination of factors than only sunlight. Personally, I find that on narrow streams in the woods, targeting the sun-shade edges and lies under overhanging brush or banks to be most successful (when the sun is out). Also, narrow streams in the woods tend to be more shaded, percentage-wise.

 

[Silent Ocelot]

I whole-heartedly think the sunlight keeps the fish down. It's not advantageous for fish to be out in the open in bright sunlight where they are highly visible to predators such as birds and humans. There's a reason I won't even attempt Valley in bright conditions when the water is clear and low. I like trout fishing in general to be on overcast days where the water has some color to it. These are the more productive days for me. I do know that in low light the fish start to move around and gather in the shallow runs (in the warmer months of the year) to feed, taking advantage of the fact that they are significantly less visible. If I were a 20+ inch brown I'd tuck into a bank for the day, only coming out if there was a large hatch. I'd rest all day and then come out at night to feed.

 

[Nymph-wristed]

In my experience, there is not one answer, as lyco and 6x stated. Even though there are times and conditions that up my chances, of course, I have caught big fish at all times of the day, even at midday on a big dry on small creeks in summer, no less. Winter and high sun has a different effect on fish and bugs, and so on.... Just a recent example: it was chilly yesterday and cold fronty, so even though it was August 31st, fishing got better after 11 AM than it was from 6 to 9, when you might assume summer fishing might be better.

To me, the most relevant observation in your post and the most plausible answer to your question is fish size. The metabolism of small fish is high, they need to eat to grow, and they have to out-compete the better fish at prime time. Same in summertime, when it often becomes a dinkfest in daylight hours. The water is 64 degrees and it's sunny, so big mama or papa is going to chill deep in some cover. Junior is going to eat because he/she has too. And then some days papa might just eat at noon....

 

[rrt]

This is an interesting post with interesting responses. I am one who thinks brown trout are generally negatively phototropic. But, when thinking about this from some responses, it is not always true. I agree that on freestone streams the browns, like the brookies, may be active all day. This seems to be especially true during the spring. As water temps rise to the trout's optimum of about 64 degrees, they often become increasingly active, especially when taking dry flies.

I also have found that trout often rise readily during sunny autumn afternoons as water temps approach the optimum. In his wonderful book, The Ways of Trout, the late Leonard Wright discussed increasing trout activity as the temp approached their metabolic optimum. This may be more important than sunshine.

However, gloomy. grungy days often produce nice action as well, esp. with nymphs. So, as some writers have suggested, the best times to fish are when you can!

 

[dryflyguy]

Types of streams seem to fish a lot different too

Usually on limestone streams, the fish tend to rise better on rainy/ overcast days.
Or in the evening.

But on big tailwaters - like the Delaware and Youghiogheny- I often find fish rising all afternoon on bright sunny days
You just never know.......

 

[rrt]

I have led a sheltered life, having never fished the Del. or the Yough. All afternoon, eh? That could be challenging and fun.