How Weather Conditions Affect the Bite

Many compare fishing to a subtle art that is hard to understand and even harder to master to perfection. Whether your fishing is successful or not depends on many factors. And these are by no means tackle and the skill of handling it. First and foremost, success depends on finding your way around the terrain correctly, choosing a good spot to fish and the angler's knowledge of the habits, habitats and main behaviour patterns of a particular species of fish. Many anglers know that heavy and prolonged rains, combined with shifting winds, leave fish with no desire to bite.

As with every rule, there are exceptions: unstable atmospheric pressure makes for excellent perch fishing. You can also see a good bite before a thunderstorm, somewhere around half an hour before. Most often, anglers forecast the bite based on the weather. Of course, success depends on the angler's experience and knack, what tackle he chooses, what bait, whether he uses groundbait, which spot he picks for fishing and so on.

When atmospheric pressure changes sharply, parallel changes occur in the behaviour and feeding of fish. High pressure makes fish more active and hungrier; when the pressure drops, their appetite disappears and the fish become sluggish.

Low temperatures make for a good bite among cold-loving fish. Other species reduce their activity and become more lethargic than at high temperatures. Members of the carp family bite actively at temperatures of 27-30 C. Lower temperatures completely kill the carp's desire to bite.

Anglers note good and poor bites in the following weather conditions: fish bite well if the days are warm and windless and the weather is overcast. There will also be a bite if good weather sets in after a long spell of bad weather. Before a thunderstorm or after a short rain, fish will also bite, but only if the weather before that was too dry. A southerly wind, sunny weather, or a light drizzle, when a slight ripple appears on the water, and also if the wind blows against the current, or a long spell of bad weather is expected.

The bite will be poor if the wind is from the north, east or north-east; fish also dislike a sharp drop or rise in the water level. Storm winds, downpours and blizzards, a sudden cold snap or, on the contrary, intense heat and dryness completely rule out a good bite for the angler.