Why do trout jump out of the water?

I’ve lived here most all my life, but I don’t think I’ll ever get used to the switch from winter to spring. A couple of days ago it was in the 20s when I went out to start the car. But today it’s pushing 80 degrees. I guess spring really has arrived. Flowers are blooming. Birds are singing. Somewhere, fish are probably jumping too.

I love to see fish jumping. Don’t you?

Yeah, I thought so. So, let’s talk about jumping trout.

One of my favorite places to see jumping fish this time of year is the Jones Bridge Unit of the Chattahoochee River National Recreation area. You’ll be standing there on the riverside trail, looking out across the river, when there it is – a flash of silver as some previously unseen trout takes to the air.

On this afternoon, I’m watching the river (and its trout) from the fishing platform at Jones Bridge. There’s a family there, too – a mom and a dad and two kids, a boy of about 8 and a little girl of about 6.

“Why are they jumping, Daddy?” asks the little girl.

“I don’t know,” the dad says. “Maybe they’re just happy.”

Maybe so!

The Jones Bridge Unit of CRNRA is right off Barnwell Road. ¬All you have to do is to turn onto the access road and follow it to the parking area at road’s end. There’s a bit of parking along the way, but be mindful of spots reserved for vehicles towing boat trailers. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.

Anyway, at the end of the road, there’s a paved parking area and even a restroom. There are also trails leading off upstream and downstream. The hiking is great, especially if you hike downstream and explore the network of trails in the unit’s southern portion. It’s one of my favorites, and I recommend it highly.

Directly opposite the parking area, there’s a step ramp – that is, a series of steps leading down to the water – which provides a good place from which to launch a kayak or ease into the river if you’re wading. In front of the ramp, and upstream and downstream for quite a ways too, the water is wide and smooth. It’s a great place to look for jumping trout.

But the question remains. Why do trout jump out of perfectly good water, where they live, and into the air where lives the likes of us?

Why indeed? Only the trout knows for sure.

One explanation is that small trout jump into the air to get away from bigger trout who might want to eat them. That makes sense. If you’ve ever seen schools of baitfish blasting out of the water, you’ve probably seen just that kind of thing happening.

There’s another (and maybe more likely) explanation too. Those who know about such things say that, in this particular case, this jumping behavior is really just part of the process of chasing down dinner.

Here’s what seems to be going on. At this time of year, there’s typically what’s known as a “hatch” of aquatic insects on many parts of the Chattahoochee. During a hatch, and at the risk of oversimplifying things, the immature forms of aquatic insects metamorphose into adult forms that take to the air to mate and lay eggs and continue the cycle of life. These insects reach adulthood only after living underwater as nymphs or larva for some period of time. But eventually, the larva undergo a series of physical changes that ultimately results in adult insects.

And that’s where it gets interesting. In order to “emerge” as an adult, the developing bug must make its way from the bottom to the surface. During that transition, those “emergers” (as they’re known) offer easy pickings for hungry trout, which often chase the emergers to the surface. As they dash to try to grab the bug before it escapes, those fish sometimes gain so much momentum that they blast through the surface and into the air. That seems to be what you are seeing when you spot a trout jumping clear of the water.

But there’s also that third possibility. As the dad on the platform suggested, maybe the trout simply think it’s fun. No one knows what trout consider entertaining, of course, but who’s to say? It’s really kind of neat to think of a river filled with exuberant trout, each expressing its inner happiness by leaping from the water and then splashing back into the cold, clear flow where it belongs. I kind of like that notion. In fact, I like it a lot.

The kids are still looking. No jumping trout have appeared yet. Then…

“There!” I say, pointing. The two kids follow my gaze. We watch intently, and

See HUDSON, Page 27