WATER DISCHARGE
Why do fishermen care about water discharge? How can fishermen benefit from having this data? Water discharge, or streamflow, is a terrific indicator of how fast or slow water is moving in a river, stream or reservoir. This helps fishermen determine whether a location is fishable to begin with. Understanding discharge can also help fishermen determine the right tactics for high or low discharge rates. Use FISHBUOY Photos to create a history of discharge rates vs. fish catches to determine your optimal flows.
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HIGHLIGHTS |
WHY UNDERSTANDING DISCHARGE WILL HELP YOU CATCH FISH |
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Water Preference |
Fish will favour their biological preferences to water flow. During high discharge, look for seams and slower moving pockets of water. |
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Feeding Behaviour |
High discharge rates impacts the amount of time your bait is in a fishes visual strike zone. Make it easier for fish to see your bait by using larger baits or higher vis colors. (See Great Lakes Spawn Tying Guidelines) |
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Seasonal Trigger |
Pay attention to signifcant increases in discharge rates around the time of spawning periods. High stream flows flush sweet water into large water bodies and can act as a trigger for pre-spawn migrations. |
* - Data dependent on monitoring station data availability and varies from state to state, province to province. Talk with your local water agencies to expand the network!
