Does high/low air pressure really affect fish behavior? If it does is it a physical thing or learned behavior since low pressure systems are often associated with cloudy days and high pressure with sunny days?
I have always heard that a high pressure system puts the fish down and makes them harder to catch. It seems to be especially common theme amongst bass fisherman. Earlier this year I was smallmouth fishing on a river with a guide and he brought up the subject saying that high pressure “made the fish feel uncomfortable” since the pressure was pushing down on the water and, therefore, the fish. He also thought it affected their air bladder.
I made the comment that it didn’t seem logical that higher air pressure cold make a fish feel uncomfortable since water, or any liquid, can’t be compressed – so how would it know what the pressure was above the water. That’s why the hydraulics on my tractor works so well, right? I realize that deeper water has greater pressure due to the increased weight of the water but would higher air pressure do the same thing?
So, I guess my real question is can fish really “feel” higher or lower air pressure?
