Fly Fishing Fundamentals - Finding Fish

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WELCOME TO FLY FISHING FUNDAMENTALS Your Foundation for Learning & Experimenting Finding Fish

FLY FISHING FUNDAMENTALS Getting Started & Gearing Up Your Fly Line System

Selecting Your Fly

- Session 1

- Session 2

- Session 3

Reading Water, Fish Behavior

- Session 4

Catching & Handling the Fish

- Session 5

On the Water Concerns

- Session 6

READING WATER, FISH BEHAVIOR Session 4 • The Fundamentals • Stream Anatomy • Reading the Water • Fish Habitat

• Identify the Fish • Fish Senses

• Fish Behavior

THE FUNDAMENTALS

Basic Fish Needs • Food • Rest • Protection Majority of Fish in 10% of the Water

WHERE ARE THE FISH? Freshwater: Rivers (Colder)

Saltwater: Ocean

Lakes (Warmer)

THE CRITICAL ELEMENT IS HABITAT • Fish depend on their habitat to survive and reproduce • A variety of fish habitat: • Streams • Rivers

• Lakes • Coral reefs • Seagrasses

READING WATER, FISH BEHAVIOR Session 4 • The Fundamentals • Stream Anatomy • Reading the Water • Fish Habitat

• Identify the Fish • Fish Senses

• Fish Behavior

3 TYPES OF RIVERS • Freestone : Gravity forces droplets of rainwater and snow melt to seep through rock crevices, soil and organic matter forming small trickles of water. Trickles form small creeks and streams, then small rivers, eventually a large river. The water warms as it progresses.

• Tailwater : The water below a hydroelectric dam or other facility with changes in flow caused by varying water release rates. With water typically released near the bottom, the constant tailwater temperatures allow aquatic insects to flourish and provide fish with a year -round source of food.

• Spring Fed : The water source is from underground and typically is cold water.

FREESTONE RIVER

This river develops from rain, melting snow, glacier

TAILWATER RIVER

Develops from the water discharged from a lake or reservoir dam

SPRING FED RIVER

This river develops from springs

STREAM / RIVER FLOW

STREAM ANATOMY

STREAM ANATOMY

– POOL

• A relatively deep area in a stream, generally with fast water at the upstream end (head), a broad flat expanse of slow water (middle), and a narrower, gradually faster area of current (tail) • Can be 3 feet long or a half mile long

STREAM ANATOMY

– RIFFLE

• Areas of more rapidly descending topography than pools • The water is shallower and faster, and the surface of the water is broken • Typically separate one pool from another

STREAM ANATOMY

– RUN

• Midway in depth between pools and riffles, narrower than pools or riffles • The water on the surface is faster than the pool

STREAM ANATOMY

– POCKET WATER

• A run or deep riffle with big rocks on the bottom causing the surface of the water to be heavily broken • Steeply inclined • Pockets can be prime or feeding lies

STREAM ANATOMY

– UNDERCUT BANK

• Formed in a pool, riffle, or run when the current erodes the bank under the surface of the water

STREAM “HYDRAULICS”

- EDDY

READING WATER, FISH BEHAVIOR Session 4 • The Fundamentals • Stream Anatomy • Reading the Water • Fish Habitat

• Identify the Fish • Fish Senses

• Fish Behavio r

WHERE ARE THE FISH?

FISH HABITAT • Study fish habitat and fish behavior to know how their instincts (protection, rest, food) determine what they may be doing and where they might be • Learn the relationship between their behavior and instincts and their habitat, particularly structure

• Look for the best places for them to rest (holding lie), to eat (feeding lie), to feel safe (protection)

FISH HABITAT

- STRUCTURE

What is structure?

• Substrate composition • Gravel bottom • Rocks and boulders • Wood

• Current and seams • Foam line

• Plant community

FISH HABITAT • When approaching a fishery listen for the birds and frogs, consider the health of the plant community, look for the likelihood of fish • Evidence of good water quality is a robust plant community, plenty of insects and wildlife – all indicating good fishing

FISH HABITAT

– PLANT COMMUNITY

The plant community in a fishery has a profound effect on:

• the availability (emergence and release) of aquatic insects; • the spawning process for many fish species

READ THE WATER • Stay back from the water to begin reading the water • Look for changes in current, depth, water color , structure

• Rocks, in front of and behind, and hydraulics • Pay attention to the banks and the cut bank

READ THE WATER • Remember stream anatomy - Run, pool, head, tail, riffles

• Where in the water can a fish find food, a place to rest, a place for protection • Look for “foam” in the current

HEAD OF A POOL Food and cover

TAIL OUT OR GLIDE OF A POOL Shallow, food source, near cover

RIFFLE Lots of Aquatic Insects; Begin Foam Line

FOAM LINE A food conveyer belt

STREAM ANATOMY

- EDDY

• Reverse currents and eddies, a source of concentrated food • Confluence line where reverse joins the main current is an excellent spot • Also look for foam concentrations • Fish may not be facing upstream

READING WATER, FISH BEHAVIOR Session 4 • The Fundamentals • Stream Anatomy • Reading the Water • Fish Habitat

• Identify the Fish • Fish Senses

• Fish Behavior

WHERE ARE THE FISH? Three types of lies: • Holding Lie • Feeding Lie

• Prime Lie All must provide some level of protection from the current to save energy

HOLDING LIES • Offers protection from predators and current

• Generally, does not offer food • Generally, under something like a bank, log, deep water, swift currents • Figure out where they are as fish will head there when hooked

FEEDING LIES • Feeding lies - fish go there for a meal • Offer food, but not a lot of shelter • Edge of riffles, gravel bars

• Tail of a pool • In front of or behind a rock

PRIME LIES • Offer food, rest, and protection at the same time - find a prime lie and you’ll find the fish • Usually under something

• Undercut bank • Deep riffle • Tangle of logs

UNDERCUT BANK Food, Cover, Rest

– A PRIME LIE

HOW WOULD YOU FISH THIS SPOT?

FISH LOCATION IN PONDS AND LAKES • Shelter, comfort and safety still apply as do the types of lies • Cruising lanes - food doesn’t come to them so they have to find it

• “Edges” are important • Structure, structure, structure

POINT STRUCTURE

COVE

VEGETATION

TRIBUTARIES

CONSIDER THE WATER COLUMN • The water column is that space between the bottom of the river and the water surface • The current flow is slower at the bottom of the water column than at the top

• Most food near the bottom

POSITION THE FLY • We rig our line to present the flies in different patterns and at different depths • Sometimes because we see fish movement, sometimes we just guess

DON’T TREAD ON A REDD!

REDDS – PROTECT THE NEXT GENERATION!

READING WATER, FISH BEHAVIOR Session 4 • The Fundamentals • Stream Anatomy • Reading the Water • Fish Habitat

• Identify the Fish • Fish Senses

• Fish Behavior

IDENTIFY YOUR FISH The fish are there - we must be able to see and identify them • Watch for the “flash” • Watch for silhouettes • Watch for the “white” edge of their mouth • Watch for movement • When you release a fish, watch it swim away • Remember - protection, food, rest • Polarized sunglasses really help

IDENTIFY YOUR FISH

Find a book that describes the fish in your area

BLUEGILL

SMALLMOUTH BASS

BROWN TROUT

STEELHEAD TROUT

READING WATER, FISH BEHAVIOR Session 4 • The Fundamentals • Stream Anatomy • Reading the Water • Fish Habitat

• Identify the Fish • Fish Senses

• Fish Behavior

FISH SENSES

- VISION

• Fish can see a range of colors.

Many species also see ultraviolet light, which humans can’t • Highly adapted to detecting relative size, shape, shadows, etc.

• Highly sensitive to behavior of food

COLOR SENSITIVITY • Fish’s color vision strongly affects ability to feed by seeing color difference in different foods • Same thing happens with predators ( bright clothing)

e.g.

• Color perception is based on: • Nature of the light (pm vs. am) • Character of the water (clarity, tannin, etc.)

• Surface of the object (it’s color)

COLOR SENSITIVITY • There is a loss of color as depth increases (a red fly at six feet appears gray) • General guidelines: •

Conditions of darkness (stained water, dark) colored flies or gaudy colors (chartreuse)

•

Bright light - use light colored flies (white, yellow, pale green)

•

Contrast is important

- use dark

FISH SENSES

- FIELD OF VISION

FISH SENSES

– LATERAL LINE

• Lateral line: series of external openings connected to a canal lined with nerve endings • Primary sound receptor

• Sensitivity: pretty incredible ; can hear a dry fly hit the water six feet away • Also use lateral line to detect slight changes in pressure

FISH SENSES

- HEARING

• Fish have an excellent sense of hearing • All fish respond to sound (and vibration)

• Three sound receptors: inner ear, swim bladder, lateral line • Inner ear: maintains balance and spatial orientation, detects compression waves • Swim bladder: amplifies compression waves for inner ear

SOUND IN THE WATER • Compression wave in water carries much farther and faster

• In swift water compression waves are washed away • Items in touch with the water (e.g. boats, tramping on the banks) will transmit compression waves • Lots of compression waves so fish are bombarded by sound - it’s the unusual ones that alarm them

FISH SENSES

- SMELL

• Fish don’t smell things like we do • They “taste” -- 100 times more sensitive than humans • They also can distinguish “texture”

FISH SENSES • • • • • • •

– WATER TEMPERATURE

Water temperature is most important environmental factor Effect varies by geographic location & species As temperature increases above 32, so does activity, feeding, and metabolism Between 59 and 64 degrees: maximum growth and activity Upper 60’s, amount of dissolved oxygen decreases Over 70 degrees, trout can survive for a while, but change feeding patterns Don’t fish for trout when water is over 70 degrees

EFFECTS OF WATER TEMPERATURE • Thermoregulation impacts behavioral; being cold blooded they avoid thermal distress by moving • Preferred temperature based upon metabolism and amount of dissolved oxygen • Amount of dissolved oxygen is directly temperature related

CHECK THE WATER TEMPERATURE

HIGH TEMPERATURE CONSIDERATIONS On the Fish: • Desiccation (taking a fish out of the water and the drying effect) • Sunlight warming temperatures On the Angler: • Fatigue, mental alertness

TEMPERATURE SENSITIVITY BY SPECIES

SPECIES

LOWER

OPTIMAL

UPPER

Bluegill Smallmouth Bass Largemouth Bass Northern Pike Brook Trout Rainbow Trout Brown Trout Steelhead Coho Salmon Atlantic Salmon

58 60 50 55 44 44 44 38 44 45

69-72 65-70 65-75 65 58 61 56-66 55-60 55 50-62

80 73 85 74 70 75 75 n/a 60 n/a

FISH SENSES

- BAROMETER

• Barometer falls, fish slow down, go deep, are less active, and are reluctant feeders • Barometer rises, fish become active and feed • Lateral line pressure on swim bladder

READING WATER, FISH BEHAVIOR Session 4 • The Fundamentals • Stream Anatomy • Reading the Water • Fish Habitat

• Identify the Fish • Fish Senses

• Fish Behavior

FISH BEHAVIOR

– THE BASIC NEEDS

• Fish occupy locations within a river based on three instincts •

Protection

•

Food

•

Rest

• Sometimes in combinations • Fish are cold -blooded - their metabolism is tied to water temperature - they eat more at higher water temperatures

FEEDING BEHAVIOR

• Use sight, hearing & chemoreception to locate prey

• Use as little energy as possible in exchange for maximum food gain • Don’t have a lot of time to make a decision , less in fast water

FISH BEHAVIOR

- VISION

• Vision is the predominant sense: once predator or prey are in visual range, other senses take a back seat • This is why presentation is so important at times when fish are selectively feeding • Trout’s pupil is fixed, but it still tolerates sunlight quite well contrary to popular belief ( e.g. feeding during the day) • Night vision not as good as day vision but better than ours • At night the eye becomes very sensitive to light (fish stop feeding in reaction to a bright light or moon) • At night, avoid shining bright lights near the water!

• When fishing at night color is relatively unimportant; profile and contrast are everything

FOOD RESPONSE

– HOW IT WORKS

• Size and profile (shape) are the first criteria the fish see • First impression isn’t detailed due to their vision • Color is a secondary consideration — important only after size and profile look good • Contrast between colors is a strong criteria • Behavior is important; how does this bug or prey behave?

• Bottom line: your fly should look natural ( e.g. movement) and behave like what it is imitating • Examples: swimming nymph should move, streamer should dart, dry should be drag -free, “Leisenring lift” for wet

FEEDING BEHAVIOR VARIES

• Opportunistic - Take what comes along or is available • Selective - Feed exclusively on one form of food to the exclusion of others

• Results from Conditioning - food source varies due to the amount available; multiple encounters

SEARCH IMAGE • Attraction to natural food sources seen repeatedly is called ”Search Image” • When Search Image is reinforced through multiple encounters, fish become selective • “Match the Search Image” vs “Match the Hatch”

SEARCH IMAGE • When Search Image is not strong (nothing hatching), fish will deviate and select different food species • Also less discriminating as to criteria, e.g., size and color (searching patterns)

SEARCH IMAGE

– HOW IT WORKS

• Search image is established through repetitive conditioning (rewards and punishments)

• Successful behavior rewarded (eat the natural insect) • Fish selects food; satisfies appetite; fish feeds again • The more this goes on, the stronger the connection • The more recent it is, the stronger it is • As recency fades ( e.g. that hatch ends for the season) the search image fades and another takes over

FISH BEHAVIOR

- WATER TEMPERATURE

• Below 45 degrees, fish seek slower water, deep pockets, and slots behind large objects

• Fish are also likely to be deeper when water temperature is colder • And it determines aquatic insect hatches

EFFECTS OF WATER TEMPERATURE • Metabolic rate rises and falls with temperature • Fish seek areas where temperature is ideal for them (balance this with other reasons to choose a lie; e.g. safety, food, shelter)

• Fallacy that trout stop feeding in hot weather -- they just change feeding patterns

TEMPERATURE SENSITIVITY

– WHEN IT’S WARM

Where they are when it’s too warm?

Fish have 3 goals when water gets warm • Move to more comfortable temperature • Avoid heat from the sun • Find higher oxygen content

Look for springs, seeps, and feeder streams • Undercut banks • Whitewater, riffles or just below • Feeding behavior may focus on cooler times of the day; morning and evening

TEMPERATURE SENSITIVITY

– WHEN IT’S COLD

Where they are when it’s too cold?

• Look for springs again; they are the warmer water now • Sunlight becomes their friend for warmth; look at the sunny side of the stream • Energy conservation takes over; they won’t chase food very far • Need to take advantage of every feeding opportunity as less is available • Feed more opportunistically so try different offerings • Look for fish away from strong currents; find steady flow with food

FISH BEHAVIOR

– FISHING CONDITIONS

Stained Water: • Vision is affected, so moving fish will go toward the bank and shallower water Time of Day:

• Midday sunlight - less protection • Water temperature - energy conservation • Bug hatches - follow the food

FISHING CONSIDERATIONS Winter: • It takes more energy to survive water temperature • Shorter days, less sunlight • Find deeper, slower water Early Spring: • Longer days, warmer daytime temperatures • Spawning; Brown Trout and Brook Trout are fall spawners, so in spring they stay deep in the winter pools Late Spring: • Effects of runoff • Water temperature climbs into optimum range and stay there all day • Heaviest time for aquatic insect hatch

FISHING DIFFERENT RIVER TYPES Freestone

Tailwater

Spring Fed

Operation Fish Behavior Technical Water Temperature Stream flow Bug life Plant life Turbidity

Natural Fish less picky Less technical Constant change Constant change Natural Less reliable Most variable

Dam controlled Fish are picky Technical Less fluctuation Quick change More consistent More consistent Mostly clear

Natural Very picky, spooky Very technical More consistent, cold More consistent Smaller Nutrient rich Gin clear

Angler Perspective

Fish are survivors Natural systems Temperature varies Predict the hatch Constant challenges

More and bigger fish More concentration of bugs and plants More angling pressure Predict the hatch

Very selective eaters Long leaders Light tippet Delicate presentation

PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER

Experience!