Discussion: Didnt fish see that hook?

[mtshark]

Hi all,

I have a little question.

"Why didnt the fish see that chunk of metal sticking out of the chunk furs, feathers etc that made up that fly and still swallow with pleasure?"

I do have a few answers but I would gladly like to know what others think about this.

We have indirectly come to discussion about fish seeing a tippet and thus fc leaders are invented etc. Thus, maybe we could discuss about this too.

I hope I get some replies about this... I know sometimes things can be common sense but sometimes we could not understand what others might be thinking. Someone might have a different angle of view from what majority may think. That's how innovation comes about with evolution in the mindset.

"Thinking out of the box."

Thanks!

[Qwek]

Hi mtshark,

I don't have the answer for that one, been cracking my head since you posted this thread. But, I found an interesting article on this subject. This was written by Dr Don Kelly; "Why Don't Fish See the Hook?"

It can easily be said that each and every angler has at one time wondered why fish do not see the hook. If we go back through time to our bait fishing years, we always tried to hide the hook. A size 20 hook was hidden inside a wax worm or mealworm, and a 3/0 saltwater hook was buried in a strip of squid. So why is it then that we rarely hide the hook on our flies? Surely trout have to see a piece of metal hanging down from an unnatural fly, right? Wrong! While there is no scientific evidence on my part, I have made some conclusions from recent human studies that were on the news.

A group of scientists held a small experiment involving about thirty participants. The participants were asked to watch a video of a couple people tossing a basketball to each other. The participants were then told to count the number of times the ball was tossed. About midway through the tape, a “gorilla” walked right thought the screen. The tape concluded and the scientists asked the group if they had seen anything peculiar in the video. Out of thirty people only a few raised their hand. <br>
Now how does this relate to fly-fishing? Well it is likely that fish concentrate so much on finding food that they do not see the hook. After all, if humans can’t see a gorilla how is a fish with a pea sized brain supposed to see a hook. On occasion a fish will see the hook and refuse your offering much like the few people who had seen the gorilla.

I am sure some people will say this is a bunch of BS, so here is a more accepted theory. For this theory let’s look at just trout. Trout are for the most part opportunistic feeders. When food presents itself, they feed. They try not to expend much energy to get their food as well. Swimming ten feet to catch a tiny trico nymph or midge larva is not worth it. Rather they sit in a small area and wait for food to come to them.

After recently watching some underwater photography at the March meeting, it is plain to see that fish often mistake debris for food. The speaker believed that trout eat only one invertebrate for every 3 or 4 takes. If a trout mistakes a twig for food 3 out of 4 times how is that fish supposed to distinguish an artificial fly with a hook from the real thing? Many times trout take in leaves, twigs, and stones, so it is no wonder that they take our small metallic offerings.

Take this for what it is, a bunch of rambling from a fellow fisherman. Is it true? Well unless someone can speak trout, I doubt we will ever know for sure. I do hope this sheds some light on the matter though.²<br>
Editor’s note: As a result of Don Kelly’s article, I contacted Dr. Colin Kageyama to see what his response would be. Kaageyama is the author of the book reviewed in the last issue of Streamside, What Fish See.

The question is: Live bait fishers always imbed the hook inside the worm, minnow, or piece of squid, in order to hide it from the fish. Fly fishers do not worry about hiding the hook and just let it sort of "dangle" out there. Do fish see a hook on an artificial lure, and does the fact that the hook is visible or hidden make a difference? <br>
Answer: The initial statement is not exactly true. Steelhead and salmon fisherman using roe or prawns, usually attach the bait to the hook with a loop of line, leaving the hook fully exposed. Lure fisherman using jigs, spinners, and plugs, always leave the hook exposed. <br>
Why? Movement... either moving water or moving lure, make the need to cover the hook a non-issue. Stream fishing, trolling, or slow retrieve fall into this area.

Fish that have never been hooked... such as migratory steelhead or salmon... or native fish in isolated areas, have no fear of a hook, making covering of the hook unimportant.

"Planters" or "catch and release" fish become more aware of the presence of a hook. Still fishing in lakes with bait, for planted trout, will probably be the area where covering the tip of the hook will make the biggest difference.

Since fly fishers will have movement in their lure, the hook being exposed is unimportant. Added to this is the factor that the hooks are usually dark and similar in color to the fly. <br>
Hope you find this information useful. Best wishes, Dr. K

The article can be found here: www.djlflyfishers.org/summer2004.htm

On the tippet theory, I can only answer from experience. I found that I have better hookup on dry flies if my tippet is not floating on the water together with the fly. The fly alone resting on the surface creats a "impression" much like a footprint. I have read J Castwell's article on Flies Only, where he shared with us the works of Vincent Marinaro, A Modern Dry-Fly Code, and, In The Ring Of The Rise.

The full articles, 12 of them can be found here: www.flyanglersonline.com/features/fliesonly/sectionone.html

Enjoy reading,

Cheers
Qwek