Learn How To Catch More And Bigger Fish

F + L + P = Success

Successful fishing involves understanding three essentials:

F = Fish

L = Location

P = Presentation

The importance of each of these essential elements varies from trip to trip and from hour to hour. The challenge is to place the correct value on each of these three elements at the right time. Master this and you'll take a huge step toward catching fish consistently.

Your objective is to catch fish. Sometimes it doesn't make sense to work on fish in a negative feeding mood when you can switch locations or species and catch fish. Make the right decision for each angling situation you face.

Understanding F (the fish) leads to L (location). Then, P (presentation) leads to success-catching fish.

F FACTOR = FISH'S BASIC NATURE

Each fish species responds differently to its environment. This is nature's way of assuring order. Responses are based on the following senses: smell, taste, touch, sight, and hearing. Through these senses, fish respond to stimuli and arrange their basic lifestyle, somewhat predetermined by genetic heritage.

Some fish have distinct teeth; others have sandpaper lips, and still others have rubbery lips. These fish each feed in different areas. Often they are found on different levels in the food chain.

Body shape also plays a role. Long, oval-shaped fish like muskies and pike forage most efficiently in edge habitat where they use a combination of stalking and ambush tactics to catch prey. Bass, in contrast, have a shorter more compact body type and forage more efficiently along edges as well as in cover.

Reproduction, comfort, and food also play a role in determining a fish's place in its environment. Various fish species respond differently to satisfy these needs.

Reproduction: Species require different water temperature and bottom conditions to spawn, or they use the same territories at different times.

Comfort: Species prefer certain water temperatures, light levels, water clarity, and other conditions.

Food: Season, water temperatures, weather conditions, and other circumstances prompt feeding. Food preferences and a balance between predator and prey are also important. A walleye may prefer perch as forage. If perch are not available, walleyes may move to find a different prey.

Each species is different. So to catch fish consistently, you must fish for each species differently. Understanding the basic -nature of each species of fish is a vital fishing factor.

L FACTOR - LOCATION

Fish adjust their behavior according to needs that are part of their basic nature. Each species displays its own unique movements on a daily and seasonal basis.

Seasonal movements or migrations may be major shifts in location. These movements usually relate to spawning, seasonal changes in water level or temperature, and to seasonal movements of prey. While yearly fish movements are often predictable, their timing usually depends on climatic conditions.

The features of a fish's environment that affect location are: structure of a body of water, interaction between fish species, and reaction to outside stimuli, principally weather and man.

Structure

Structure involves elements like bottom configuration, bottom content, water characteristics, vegetation, and water movement.

Bottom Configuration-How is the body of water shaped? Is it deep? Is it shallow? Does it have sharp breaks (drop-offs), or does it have slow tapering breaks? Does it have an inlet, an outlet, or both? Is the lake or pond round or long and thin? Are there points and bends?

Bottom Content-Is there rock, sand, gravel, silt or muck? Are there sunken trees or brush piles?

Water Characteristics-Oxygen level and water clarity bear on fish location. Decaying matter reduces oxygen content and forces fish to seek shallower water.

Water clarity has several major effects on fish location and behavior. Stained-water fish rely on a mixture of sight, hearing, and feel to locate prey; while clear-water fish may be more sight oriented. Dark-water fish may be more vibration conscious. Vision, sound, and vibration play a role in lure selection.

Vegetation-Are there weeds? The points and pockets of weed patches and their density or sparseness are a part of structure.

Water Movement-Water coming into or leaving a body of water affects fish location, especially if the movement is quick, as in many rivers and impoundments. In lakes the effects are more subtle.

Species Interaction

Species interaction involves density of population, availability of food, competitive species, and how these interrelate.

Density of Population-The larger the population of fish in a body of water, the more orderly the location pattern. This is nature's way of maintaining order in the environment.

If actively feeding schools of big pike, walleyes, and bass used one bar at the same time, the result could be confusion. To ensure order, each species has territories.

Availability of Food-Predators stay near their seasonal prey. Available food determines growth, and ultimately the health of a fish population.

Competitive Species-Certain species are compatible; others are not. Competition for food and spawning habitat affects fish location.

Reaction to Outside Stimuli

This category can be divided into elements such as seasonal temperature, local weather, and man.

Seasonal Temperature-Temperature affects a body of water. Dark water absorbs sunlight faster and warms earlier than clear water. Thus the Calendar Periods (Prespawn, Spawn, etc.) may occur earlier in dark water.

Local Weather-Weather affects day-to-day locational patterns. Cold or warm fronts may produce different effects. A cold front's effect on an ultraclear, cool lake is more pronounced than on a darker, warmer lake. Local weather also triggers or retards insect hatches which determine fish location.

Man-Boats; skiers; fishermen; swimmers; pollution; habitat alterations such as clearing weeds and brush, draining sloughs, or adding brush piles, cribs, and artificial reefs all affect fishing.