Sunday I was fishing a DHALO section that had been stocked only 1 day earlier.

There was a major BWO hatch in addition to big (sz 10 - 12) stone flies everywhere in the afternoon. I fished a few miles and didn't see a single fish rise. I know the stream is floated by a local organization and I managed fish on buggers, yarn eggs, and weenies throughout the few miles I fished - so I know they were there.

My question is this. How long after stocking does a fishes instict to take natural food kick in? When does it "click" that the monster stonefly fluttering in the film or that nymph drifting along is dinner?

There probably is no set rule as far as when the fish learn to eat natural organisms. Some pick it up quicker than others, but eventually they all figure it out. When their bellies get hungry, the instinct kicks in to eat and they seek out food. If I had to guess, I'd say that within the first week or so the fish figure it out.

when they get hungry. I don't think there is a magic number. I have seen them eat the same day. (or what I thought was the same day anyway) And like any other fish it could be water temp, water color, air pressure, maybe they are eating something else. If we knew the answer we'd all catch a lot more fish.

You up at the traffic jam on the Neshannock on Sunday? I was there too and almost choked a few guys! Particularly ones that liked to throw spoons right where I standing/casting.

Stocked fish come from a nursery where they are fed daily. They have a routine. Often its once or twice a day or by way of demand feeders. A day or two before they are stocked the feeding stops to reduce stress from handling. Then when they get in the stream they take a day or two acclimate to their new surroundings. Within this period they may feed on anything that goes by because they are likely hungry because the have not eaten in days. They continue this behavior until they realize what is food and what is not. I have checked the stomachs of stocked fish and found sticks, twigs, leaves, etc.

So essentially anything coming by is food to them for a period of time. In addition, they are likely competeing with other fish in the same group....like in the nursery. They may be hitting food things on top, in the water column, on the bottom.

After they realize there is no daily routine they become accustom to the the *new* daily routine of behavioral drift (mornings and nights when the nymph life lets loose and drifts) or during the day when sporadic nymphs break loose or a hatch occurs.

So the short answer is Immediately to within a few day they will begin to eat bugs. However depending on their acclimation timeline to the *new* routine they will become more settled and dependable toward the insect activity.

Of course water temperature has alot to do with feeding routines. Temperature increases by a few degrees in colder water (35-45 deg) will trigger feeding urges. When the water temp is in the optimal range they will rely on their newly attained routine and feed opportunistically on bugs that come by or when hatch density becomes stronger they will feed voraciously because this is when the food is in the column or on top.

These principle explain why early on they will chase streamers. Because they are hungry and anything is food. But they have never eaten a minnow before so they are poor at it often nipping or hitting it and not getting hooked.

Also it explains why when they are in the water for a few weeks to a year they can become very picky.....perhaps less spooky and comfortable with fishermen around but quite selective toward the food source.

I would think that they would tend to eat subsurface naturals before they would chase an oviposting bug, especially the early stones. If the water is fertile, I've found them absolutely gorged on larvae of one sort or another and you'd hardly see them rise.

Stockers are stupid and have no idea what a stonefly or bwo is. When they are hungry they start eating things - food and non-food items - and if they last long enough they eventually start to figure out what is food and what isn't. They are a clean slate with no experience only survival instinct which is eat and figure it out.

I've watched fish stocked less than an hour earlier eating naturals. Nevertheless, I'd guess that normally it would be a few days before they really kick in on bugs.

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Haha I was there also on Sun. and saw those guys.

I'm not real good on bugs, so all those smaller flies hatching were BWO's? I definitely saw all the stoneflies. Didn't see a rise also all day. I'm with the other guys, they have no idea what's food and what isn't. But since they are used to eating pellets on the surface, shouldn't there at least be some fish eating off the top?

This was Buffalo Creek in Armstrong/Butler. Neshannock is overrated to me and the early season crowds aren't worth it.

Some and I imagine a pretty good number never seem to get it.

Yeah, I'm starting to get turned off on the Nesshanock. I didn't fish it once last year and after last Sunday, I probably won't be back. It was pretty funny, I was in the fly shop and the owner was on the phone telling the guy to come up cause guys were catching fish everywhere and it was soooo worth it, end quote. Definitely was not worth it. Definitely weren't guys catching fish everywhere. They were so freakin spooked from the 1 million fishermen tromping around through the stream. That's also probably why there weren't any risers. If one even thought about rising, I'm sure they were put down right away after the insanity that was going on there.

Anothere story from earlier in the day, A FF'er was fishing a small hole and waded in about halfway across the stream to nymph. A spin guy stood at the bank and proceeded to whip spoons at him for 15 minutes. I mean literally landing them 2 feet away.

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How far downstream from the shop did you fish?

You guys realize that there are nearly 3 miles of special regs and the stretch is float stocked, right?

The hole behind the fly shop is not the only spot open to fishing, and it is not the only place to find fish.

We walked down probably a mile and a half. didnt go all the way to the bridge but there were still guys everywhere downstream. It was pretty disgusting.

Given the weather and the fact that it was Sunday, that's not too suprising. But if your experience with Neshannock is limited to weekends, particularly early season, I can see why you're frustrated with the DHALO area. Right now, most guys think it's the only game in town.

Personally, I avoid the weekends and seldom have trouble finding room to fish. That might not be an option for everyone, but if you can swing it, it's the thing to do.