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Fishing report

Black Canyon Reservoir Bluegill Fishing Report

Emmett, ID

Illustration of a bluegill (Lepomis macrochirus)

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Modeled from live National Weather Service data as of Aug 10, 2026 at 8:51 AM MDT, plus solunar and sun/moon times computed in-house. This is a computed report, not an eyewitness catch report.

A state fisheries survey records Bluegill in Black Canyon Reservoir.

Overall rating

Bluegill at Black Canyon Reservoir — 2026-08-10

Good · 74/100

Best window: 11 AM (Excellent · 82/100)

Some conditions data (cloud cover or barometric pressure) was unavailable from the weather service for this day — the rating above reflects only what was available.

Season
Summer
Moon
6% illuminated, waningWaning Crescent
Est. surface temp
88.1°F
Pressure
Unknown

Est. water temp

88.1°F

v1 estimate from air temperature — not a sensor reading

Above Bluegill's 67-85°F range

Sun & moon

Sunrise
6:44 AM
Sunset
8:56 PM
Moonrise
3:49 AM
Moonset
8:01 PM
Sky, wind & pressureat best window · 11 AM
Cloud cover
1%
Precip chance
0%
Wind
7 mph WSW
Pressure
Unknown

Species context

Why this score

Good (74/100) for Bluegill: water is estimated at 88.1°F, above Bluegill's 67-85°F optimal range. Best window: Daytime — suppresses feeding activity by about 20%. That hour also overlaps a major solunar period. Stable pressure modeled flat — no change from this fish's baseline. Light (5-10 mph) wind modeled about 15% above this fish's baseline.

What's driving the 11 AM score

Water temperature (88.1°F estimated) is doing the most for this score. The score gives up the most on light window — daytime, about 9.6 points below its best.

  • Water temperature · helping
  • Light window · neutral
  • Solunar period · helping
  • Barometric pressure · helping
  • Wind · helping
Show the numbers behind this
  1. Water temperature: 88.1°F estimated

    31.7 of 40 pts

    Optimal range 67-85°F

    Well supportedWater temperature governs a cold-blooded fish's metabolism, so it is the largest term in the model (Christie & Regier 1988). The figure is a thermal-lag estimate built from forecast air temperature and the time of year — not a sensor reading, and not this lake's actual measured water.

  2. Light window: Daytime

    15.4 of 25 pts

    Suppresses feeding activity by about 20%

    Well supportedLow-light feeding windows are the strongest timing signal inside a single day. How much each window is worth is this species' own cited response, sourced in its model file, not a generic curve.

  3. Solunar period: Major period

    15 of 15 pts

    Not supported by testingPeer-reviewed testing of North American freshwater fisheries found no significant relationship between solunar values, lunar phase or lunar illumination and catch rates (SN Applied Sciences, 2023) — air temperature predicted catch better than any solunar table tested. It is shown because anglers expect it, and it is shown separately so you can discount it. Its weight is under owner review.

  4. Barometric pressure: Stable

    9.5 of 10 pts

    Modeled flat — no change from this fish's baseline

    ContestedThe barometric effect is real to most anglers but small and contested in the literature — several of the species studies cited in this model report null results — so it carries one of the smallest weights here.

  5. Wind: Light (5-10 mph)

    10 of 10 pts

    Modeled about 15% above this fish's baseline

    Moderately supportedWind stacks forage on windward structure, but both the size and the direction of the effect depend on the species and the water, so it carries a modest weight.

Then the whole score is scaled

Season: Summer — ×1.00 (100% of the ungated score)

How catchable Bluegill are at this point in the year. This scales the whole score rather than competing with the factors above — a fish that is dormant this time of year cannot score well no matter how good the hour looks.

Weather front: No clear front — ×1.00 (100% of the ungated score)

A multi-hour frontal pattern read from the day's forecast trajectory. No front is classified today, so this changes nothing and the single-reading pressure factor above does its normal job.

Those five factors add up to 81.6 of 100 points, and the two multipliers above take that to 82. The weights are v1 tuning constants under owner review — they are shown here rather than hidden so you can weigh them against your own judgement.

What this score does not know

  • Water clarity. We have no source for it and do not estimate it.
  • Measured water temperature. The figure in the breakdown is a model over forecast air temperature, not a reading from a buoy or a probe.
  • Baitfish and forage activity.
  • How much fishing pressure this water has had.
  • Where the fish actually are. Depth bands are the species' published seasonal ranges, not an observation of this lake.
  • What anyone actually caught. No catch reports feed this score.

Conditions read from the National Weather Service as of Aug 10, 2026 at 8:51 AM MDT. Solunar periods and sun/moon times are computed, not fetched.

When best caught

It's currently summer. Bluegill typically hold 10-20 ft deep this time of year — at an estimated 88.1°F, this looks like a slower time of year to target them, since water temp is outside their optimal range.

Current depth

10-20 ft

This is the seasonal depth band from the species model — relative to this species' typical behavior, not this lake's actual structure. True depth relative to this lake's bottom contours needs lake bathymetry (tracked in issue #175).

Today's solunar periods

  • Minor: 3:19 AM4:19 AM
  • Major: 11:01 AM1:01 PM
  • Minor: 7:31 PM8:31 PM
  • Major: 11:32 PM1:32 AM

Best times

When do bluegill feed during the day?

Bluegill feed most actively at Dawn and Dusk, when activity runs about 33% above the daily average across all four light windows.

  • Dawn1.30x

    Boosts feeding activity by about 30%.

  • Daytime0.80x

    Suppresses feeding activity by about 20%.

  • Dusk1.30x

    Boosts feeding activity by about 30%.

  • Night0.50x

    Suppresses feeding activity by about 50%.

Hour by hour

Hourly bite forecast

HourBite scoreRatingLightWind
8 AM
71
GoodDay5 mph W
9 AM
69
GoodDay3 mph WSW
10 AM
71
GoodDay6 mph WSW
11 AM
82
ExcellentDay7 mph WSW
12 PM
82
ExcellentDay8 mph W
1 PM
82
ExcellentDay8 mph W
2 PM
71
GoodDay8 mph W
3 PM
71
GoodDay9 mph W
4 PM
71
GoodDay8 mph W
5 PM
71
GoodDay8 mph WNW
6 PM
71
GoodDay8 mph WNW
7 PM
76
GoodDay6 mph NW
8 PM
76
GoodDay5 mph NNW
9 PM
81
ExcellentDusk5 mph N
10 PM
65
GoodNight6 mph NE
11 PM
76
GoodNight5 mph ENE

Where to find Bluegill right now

Typical Summer depth: 10-20 ft

Bluegill feed most actively at Dawn and Dusk, when activity runs about 33% above the daily average across all four light windows.

No depth survey or measurement is on record for Black Canyon Reservoir, so these bands are the species' published seasonal ranges rather than a reading of this water.

Plan a Bluegill trip to Black Canyon Reservoir

Change the date, compare species, or check the week ahead in the live tool.

Other species on record at Black Canyon Reservoir

FAQ

Common questions

Are there Bluegill in Black Canyon Reservoir?

A state fisheries survey records Bluegill in Black Canyon Reservoir.

When do Bluegill bite at Black Canyon Reservoir?

Bluegill feed most actively at Dawn and Dusk, when activity runs about 33% above the daily average across all four light windows. Today's report above scores every hour of the local day against live weather for Black Canyon Reservoir, and shows what each input contributed alongside how well the evidence supports it.

How deep should you fish for Bluegill at Black Canyon Reservoir?

Typical Bluegill depth by season: Pre-Spawn 5-12 ft, Spawn 1-8 ft, Post-Spawn 6-15 ft, Summer 10-20 ft, Fall 6-18 ft, Winter 5-20 ft. These bands come from published fisheries data for the species, not from a survey of Black Canyon Reservoir itself.