Anglers’ social network offers fishing data in statewide report
In the year of COVID-19, angler participation in Pennsylvania increased 43%, Lake Erie was the most productive place to fish, and brook trout sightings went up 90%. Sort of.
Those statistics and more are based on voluntary fishing reports from anglers participating in a new form of social media. Fishbrain (www.fishbrain.com) is an app, website and social network for people who like to fish. This month, the company released its first statewide fishing report for Pennsylvania. The network analyzed input from more than 86,000 catches recorded across the state.
Like Facebook, Instagram and other social media, the network is a communication tool for like-minded participants, tapping anonymous user input, filtering word usage with an algorithm and pulling up categorized data.
Lisa Kennelly, the Sweden-based company’s chief marketing officer, said other web-based social networks are too broad to focus on a single subject.
“Unlike Facebook and Instagram, Fishbrain is all about fishing,” she said. “The difference is community. [We] have so far 11 million users across the United States posting their catches and [writing] about nothing but fishing — where to go, what bait to use, whether the fish are biting.”
While sharing fish photos and stories about their trips on the free-to-use mobile app, users are contributing to a database they can refer to for specific information. In free and premium versions, app users can dig down to regional weather conditions, moon phases and maps as well as trending lures and locations.
This year, with indoor recreation severely curtailed, outdoor recreation of all kinds flourished and the Fishbrain community grew. In Pennsylvania, the network’s usage showed a 43% increase since 2019. The state Fish and Boat Commission experienced the same phenomenon. In 2019, 820,021 Pennsylvania fishing licenses and permits were sold. This year, sales grew by nearly 20% to 980,141.
“Fishing was one of the few things you could do, which was very good for us,” Ms. Kennelly said. “It started with hard-core anglers who recognized what Fishbrain provides, but now we’re seeing more people who are more casual about fishing. It’s an exciting thing for us.”
Johan Attby, CEO of Fishbrain, said in a statement that during the pandemic, fishing has provided a valuable recreational opportunity.
“At a time when millions of people have been plunged into lockdown, many people took up fishing as a responsible, socially distanced pastime.” he said. “It is heartening to see such a vast increase in catches in 2020 as Pennsylvanians turned to the water, and I hope that this trend continues in 2021 as people come to realize the myriad of benefits fishing can have, from increasing mental well-being to forming new friendships.”
Through November in Pennsylvania, Fishbrain users logged 86,136 catches including 30,894 largemouth bass, 9,832 smallmouths and 5,994 brown trout. They reported seeing 2,483 brook trout, Pennsylvania’s state fish and an indicator of good water quality.
Fishbrain users were most successful fishing in Lake Erie, reporting 3,519 catches. They posted 3,185
catches from Lake Nockamixon in Bucks County and 2,301 from Lake Arthur in Butler County. According to Pennsylvania users of the mobile app, a 5-inch Senko Worm in green pumpkin color topped a list of the 10 most productive lures.
As more anglers post their catches through the Fishbrain app, the website is growing. Last year, said Ms. Kennelly, Fishbrain’s virtual store carried 10,000 items. This year some 80,000 products are available for purchase.
The company is sharing information with some state wildlife agencies and beginning to work with university researchers. Ms. Kennelly said as the database of user habits and product usage grows, Fishbrain planners hope to be valuable to recreation industry groups, which inform manufacturers about customer preferences and coach retailers about tr ending merchandise.