Flasher- Fish ID and clues

[toonfish]

When marking fish on your flasher, what do you look for to clue you in on what species you are sitting on? Most walleyes I have caught hug the bottom and have to be worked up slowly, crappies suspend, sunfish are just everywhere and perch??? But is there anything that you see that is usually a dead giveaway (besides catching) that helps you ID if your on what you are looking for?

[New2TheFly]

Sounds like you already figured it out. Perch will hug the bottom like walleye. Sometimes crappies come off the bottom as well. I usually have an idea of what fish I see on the flasher based on my location on the lake.

[jwmiller33]

if you are in a spot where you are graphing and catching a lot of panfish, like crappies and sunfish that are suspended, and all of a sudden your graph goes completely blank, there is a good chance a big predator fish came thru, like a big northern or something... i like to have a rod set up with a big spoon for northerns when i am panfishing for times like this when all the panfish disappear for a little bit.

[mr_jman]

Pretty much what you said. Location of the marks on the vexilar are usually a good indicator. The crappies up higher, walleyes close to bottom. Bluegills and Perch usually when multiple marks and lots of activity are fairly close to bottom or when the fish quickly and willingly chase a bait up through the water column. The bite can sometimes feel different between those two.

The time of the day and your location may also provide a few clues.

When the screen goes blank I also have a feeling a northern is in the area or the fish have moved on.

[magic_minnow]

There is a 100% foolproof way of telling what species.................its called aqua vu

[TurnUpTheFishing]

For perch and eyes, line color/size is a good give away on what youre on. I find perch tend to nibble a bit before committing many times, if you get very light bites or nibbles I usually suspect perch. Finally if you give a quick snap of the jig and your fish spook, probably perch.

[jwmiller33]

I find perch tend to nibble a bit before committing many times, if you get very light bites or nibbles I usually suspect perch.

these little nibble bites can also be finicky walleyes

[magic_minnow]

A Q U A V U

[thedeadsea]

The crappies are always suspended where I fish, from 1-10 feet off the bottom in 45 FOW. If the fish are higher than that, it is almost always tulibee or whitefish.

[eurolarva]

Minnetonka last night the crappie were on the bottom. I could get them to come up with a chubby darter but not commit to it so it could have been a walleye or a crappie or a perch. Aquaview will tell you what is at the bottom but not usually a suspended fish. Moving a camera up or down sometimes will spook fish. I have not had much luck catching larger crappie or walleye with the camera down. Small fish will school with the camera but larger panfish seem more nervous around it.

[Double A]

When fishing for walleye, I look for the bottom signal on my vex to swell. that's a good indication there's walleye in the cone. Then it's a matter of presentation. try tuning the sensitivity with different lure styles (plain hook versus spoon versus chubby darter, etc.) when you catch a fish, recall what the vexilar looked like as you set the hook. looking at your bobber when you set your hook won't increase your chances of catching.

[toonfish]

All good info- I do have a camera, just tough to use at night. So when in search for walleyes, you go out punch a bunch of holes and check with vex, do you usually put a line down and jig for a bit to see if you can pull something up off the bottom, rather than just looking to mark a fish?

From the point you drill and drop the vex in, how do you use the marked fish to make a move to another spot. i.e. You are looking for walleyes, you drop the vex in and because you mark 10 fish you assume panfish. From there do you ever follow a rule of thumb as to where walleye may be in relation to the panfish you are marking (deeper, shallower, or just find a completely new pattern?)I tend to jump ship to a completely to a different pattern.

[Zoob]

With how slow the bites have been this year, I wouldn't trust jigging for a nibble to test the area - at least not until later in the season when they start to get more aggressive and hungrier.

Once you found a pack of 'em, start toying with your lures until you get one to go from "hey, that's neat." to "nom nom nom!"

[sticknstring]

I haven't seen much "nom nom nom" lately. Quite a bit of "hey that's neat" though. In fact, I can't recall a year with so many lookers.

[Zoob]

I haven't seen much "nom nom nom" lately. Quite a bit of "hey that's neat" though. In fact, I can't recall a year with so many lookers.

I've had the same this year, and it's what I've been hearing from everyone I bump into. Very light year.