Let’s Debunk 5 Fishing Myths
Stop me if you’ve heard this one.
Q: How do you know when anglers are lying?
A: Their lips are moving!
That old joke might be a bit harsh. No one can deny, however, that anglers have been known to tell the odd tall tale. Never let the truth get in the way of a good story. Over time, some of these slight exaggerations and harmless embellishments have taken on a life of their own and grown into persistent myths. You hear a lot of things out on the water. So what’s real and what’s rubbish? Let’s debunk some of the most common fishing myths.
1. Pike and Muskie Lose Their Teeth in The Summer
The old-timers once swore that no one catches pike or muskie in the summer because that’s when they lose their teeth, and their mouths are sore. Rest assured, this old myth is pure, total, and absolute rubbish.
Pike and muskie don’t lose their teeth anytime of year. If they did, they would promptly starve.
The real reason anglers seem to catch fewer pike and muskie in hot weather is because they’re not fishing where the pike and muskie are. These fish like cool water. When the hot sun warms the shallows to soup-like temperatures, the big fish clear out and head for colder water in depths of 60 feet or more, where few anglers ever try their luck.
2. Fish Don’t Bite in The Rain
Fish don’t care if it rains—they’re already wet. Rain in calm conditions is actually one of the better times to fish, since the reduced light intensity tends to increase fish activity.
Although fish may not care about rain, they are highly sensitive to the rapid changes in barometric pressure that accompany summer storms. Some species, largemouth bass included, tend to bury into heavy cover when the weather goes sideways. Other species such as walleye are more likely to seek the protection of deep water. Either way, they’re not doing what they normally do, so they are more difficult to find and catch.
3. Fish Can Be Frightened by Loud Voices
This oldie but goodie—among the oldest of the fishing myths—says that loud voices can spook fish and alert them to an angler’s presence. Not true. Fish can’t hear airborne sounds at all, so feel free to talk, yodel, or sing operas if you like. The fish won’t care one way or another.
Having said that, some noises will absolutely alert every nearby fish to your presence:
- Stepping heavily on the shoreline
- Dropping a pair of pliers on the bottom of the boat
- Kicking mud off your boots
- Dragging a tackle box across the deck
It isn’t the airborne sounds that spook them but the resulting vibrations, which travel for incredible distances underwater. Sing to your heart’s content, but always move like a cat in the boat.
4. Big Fish Demand Big Bait
As children, we’re told that little fish get eaten by medium-sized fish that in turn become meals for giants. So if you want to catch whoppers, you need to use huge baits, right? It’s a nice idea, but wrong.
Think about blue whales. They’re the biggest creatures in the sea, but their diet consists of tiny creatures called krill, which are barely the size of your fingernail. They just eat an awful lot of them.
The truth is you need to give fish what they’re accustomed to eating. Is their primary prey small, slender fish like dace or emerald shiners? Then use small, slender baits that mimic those species. Do the fish you’re targeting mainly eat crayfish? That’s your clue as to the size, color, and shape of the lures you should be using. When giant trout are focused on eating tiny bugs, that’s what you need to use if you want to catch fish.
Give the fish what they’re looking for and you’ve won one battle.
5. No Bananas on Board
Bring a banana on the boat and you won’t catch a thing, according to the myth. But fortunately, it’s just a myth and nothing more, so feel free to enjoy all of the bananas you like.
The dislike of bananas on board goes back to the 1700s. That’s when they first began appearing as cargo on commercial ships trading between Europe and South America. Unfortunately, plenty of undesirable creatures were mixed in with the bananas, from snakes to rats to several species of highly venomous spiders.
Sailors quickly developed a distaste for having bananas on board. While that distaste is now completely baseless, the myth of bananas bringing bad luck persists.
Hey, we’re not saying you can’t resort to excuses—myths, even—if you have an unsuccessful day hooking anything. Know, however, that these particular fishing myths have been debunked, many for a long time. Just do what everyone else does and talk about the one that got away.
Craig Ritchie
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