Barotrauma

Type: Tidal
Region: Southern
Location: Patuxent River

I recently fished the Patuxent River near the Thomas Johnson bridge. I was fishing for white perch. As cold weather moves in perch will move to great depths, following bait and finding warmer water. The Patuxent River reaches well over 100’ at its lower reaches. I’ve fished for white perch in 70’ of water off Greenwell State Park and at depths of over 80’ near the Thomas Johnson bridge. When hunting perch at these depths I’ll drop small metal jigs and sabiki rigs tipped with fishbites. Some consideration with respect to barotrauma needs to be factored in here. If you are not keeping fish you may not want to fish for them this time of year. Bringing fish up from these depths can harm the fish. They may suffer barotrauma, which is a physical injury to their body tissues. It is caused by pressure differential between their air-filled body cavities and the surrounding water. Another factor here is that very small striped bass are at this depth too, and will eat the same baits as the perch. If you are harvesting perch and start to catch striped bass you should move location, preventing them harm. Signs of barotrauma of fish are bulging eyes, anus and their swim bladder come out of their mouth. These fish will most likely not survive unless you have a barotrauma release tool or venting tool. Stay safe out there and fish smart. DNR Response: Barotrauma is a pressure- related injury that fish can experience when brought rapidly to the water's surface from deep waters, usually more than 60'. The decrease in pressure causes the swim bladder to over inflate. Symptoms include bulging eyes, protruding stomach and intestines caused by an over inflated swim bladder. The swim bladder helps fish maintain neutral buoyancy in their environment. Anglers can use various devices to allow the swim bladder to return to a deflated state. These include venting tools and descending devices. A quick release for mild symptoms of Barotrauma will usually allow fish to adjust and swim back down to their original depths.