Another question from a beginner

[DoubleDuty]

When I read articles about water temperature and fish movement are they speaking of surface temps or at a certain depth as a standard. No article I have read says at what depth the readings are taken from.

I appreciate all the help. This thing called Crappie catching is a little harder than what I expected starting out. I must say it is fun to learn but it's also nice to catch a few here and there in the process.

DD

[foul hook]

I think most temps ref. surface . I tried one of those long line probes that didn't work. Dont even know the brand. It read at 40 feet the same temp as the surface. Maybe i got a lemon , just figured I don't need to know. Use your electronics and find the fish, put the bait in there face and get a holt.

[Hanr3]

Persistance pays off.

As for your question. Water temp is surface temp. Most, if not all, fish finders have a temp sensor, taht sensro sits on the bottom of your boat, so it is measuring water surface temp.

The deeper you go the colder the water gets. Fish cant regulate body temp, they find a comfort zone and stayt there. Knowing thier preferred temp zone will help you find them. Find that depth in one spot on the lake and generally you will find them at that depth all over the lake, barring any climate changes. Such as feeder creeks dumping hot/cold water.

The three keys to finding crappie is structure, structure, and structure. Crappie relate/hide in and around structure. They are like hunters, they set up in tree stands and wait for their pray to come by. Instead of standing above their prey, they fish up. Crappie look up to eat/hunt. Bait fish need warmer water, so they swim above the crappie.

When you mark fish, you need to figure out how deep they are. Your fish finder will show a depth. Remember that depth is from teh sensor, not the top of the water. If your sensor is 3 feet under water you will need to add 3 feet to your depth. If your sensor is 1 foot under water you will need to add 1 foot to your depth. That is assuming your slip bobber fishing and your bobber is on teh surface. I find the best depth is 1-2' above teh depth of the fish. IF your marking fish at 10' down fish 8-9' feet down. That will put your bait 1-2' above them. I am fortunate in that my sensor is 1 1/2-2' below the surface. I set my slip bobber at the depth on the fishifinder. Make sthe math simple.

[Hillbilly910]

99% of terms, ideas ect revolve around surface temps. The water is different temps as you go deeper however, as is the D/O(disolved oxygen) levels.
As the water heats up, the heavier, un-oxygenated water sinks to the bottom. There is a certain level at which the water becomes tolerable for fish, this level is called a thermocline. Im no expert in the field(would love to learn more about the thermocline, hint hint), but i think thats the 1st grade explanation of it. If im wrong, by all means straighten me out.

Back to your question, like in a magazine when they say "when the water temps reach 60 degree's, fish will be nearing spawning grounds...ect" they are refering to surface temps. About all sonar units will measure surface temps.

HB

[Arkie John]

Most are talking about whatever their depthfinder reflects...which is surface temp.

I caught a LOT more crappie and bigger crappie when I was a kid fishin' with my Daddy than I do now. That is mainly because I didn't pay enough attention to his techniques or his prime places to fish.

I had a decent spring, but I have seen them MUCH better back around 1960 or so.


aj

[foul hook]

A-men Aj!

[PawPaw Gene]

Hey Arkie, I bet your Paw spent more time fishing than chasing them with a fish finder. Sometime we over-complicate things.

"gene"


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[speckfinder]

Hey Arkie, I bet your Paw spent more time fishing than chasing them with a fish finder. Sometime we over-complicate things.

"gene"


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we sure do

[DoubleDuty]

Thanks everyone. All good stuff here.

[J.E.Clayton]

Hey Arkie, I bet your Paw spent more time fishing than chasing them with a fish finder. Sometime we over-complicate things.

"gene"


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I agree thats why I gave my locator away. I have been doing alot better at catching bigger crappie with out it.