The use of RED in fishing.

[Walleye Express]

Good topic.

I have heard a lot of discussion on the benefits of red colors in baits and hooks. However, Cajun line claims their red line disappears when it's 8 or 10 feet under water. If this is true, baits running below that depth would be almost invisible if they are red. I am wondering who is full of bull, they obviuosly can't both be right.

Thanks,

Anthony

Anthony.

It would indeed be great if there was a consistent set of criterion for catching walleyes. A specific set of rules and techniques that applied to them consistently in all situations. Something as precise and consistent as reading an Engineers Blue prints. But that would involve knowing the exact finite parameters in a fishes world and his every reaction to them. We do indeed know some, from simple repetitive success. But most all of them are reliably hinged to seasonal habits and instincts, tied into their predictable reactions to climatic changes and just where and when to intercept them during these times. We've come a long way in knowledge and equipment to help us find and catch walleyes. But we are (IMHO) as far away from breaking their physical genetic codes as we were 30 years ago. And thank God walleyes can't and don't rationally think, or we'd never catch one. Our best teachers for fishing success will always be each other. If red works where and how you fish, use it. Capt. Dan.

[GLF]

We have a good article on how colors are viewed under water. How Colors Are Viewed Underwater.

IMHO and from what I have read, red is only visible to about 30'. There are a lot of factors that determine just how deep you can see it. ie...postion of the sun, clouds, water clarity, waves, etc, etc, etc.

I am a certified scuba diver and have been down to a depth of 100'. You can not view red at 100', without an artificial light source.

[Walleye Express]

One of the articles I wrote for the MSSFA newspaper back in the early 80's, when I was still knee deep in Big Water Salmon trolling, was on this very subject. I titled it "Maybe it's what they don't see". It compared and pointed out what the basic similarities were to the Hot spoon colors all along the East and West shorelines of the Great Lakes. What many had in commmon was either being White or Silver on one side. And how Black with whatever colored stripe on the other, was a real hot spoon color. I theorized then that it wasn't the colors they were seeing but the look the spoon took on when going from visible to invisible as it flipped and flashed back and forth in the water column. Giving the spoons the same look as pulsating school of baitfish, as they flee or change swimming directions.

[GLF]

The colors become a grayish color when they exceed the depth/light penetration spectrum for their color.

IMHO...I say low vis green is the least visible color for line. The red p-line does not become invisible....it only looses the red color. The same thing with red hooks.

I called one of the manufacturers that sells red hooks. They told me based on their testing that fish can see red beyond the depth/light spectrum. I find this hard to believe. With no red light to reflect, there is no red.

[Walleye Express]

Let me ask you this Mike. What color are fish then, that far down? If all color is black or gray in the depths, I'm guessing then that they either perseve colors different then we do, are triggered souly by the lures action, or color means nothing to a fish. Cause if a fish were actually color sensitive, or related one color more to their forage then the others, all of us (through trail and error) would by now realize it.

[GLF]

Most fish can see in color. As in people, the retina of a fish's eye contains two types of cells, rods and cones. Cones are used for day vision and are the cells used to see colors. Rods are used for night vision and cannot distinguish colors, although they can judge light intensity. The eyes of most freshwater fish contain both rods and cones, though day feeders tend to have more cones, and night feeders more rods.

When a lure exceedes its depth/light pentration color, you will get different shades of grays, and blacks. This may account for as to why some of those baits working better than others.

Right now its near a full moon, and there is snow on the ground. If you wait till its dark, and put a beech ball outside in the snow 10 yds away, what color will you see? Make sure there is no artificial light. You may see different shades of darkness with the different colors, but for the most part, you will see black. Why? Without any light, there is no color.

[DIRTY DOG]

did either of you put into perspective that the eye of a fish {dependeing on speciese} has much different lite reflecting propertys than the eye of a person, and they may be able to see different shades and colers differently than we do at sertain depths

[caznik]

I use Maxima fiber glow and that is red fishing line and I took 2nd place in the fishing league last year in point chapionship......

I think it works great and I can see it better at night when setting up my lines.

Rich

[Walleye Express]

Caz.

I had similar results last summer. I started out with only 2 rods that I spooled Cajun Red line onto. By my third trip this past season, even my clients were commenting that those 2 rods were catching most of the fish, no matter where they were on the planer board line. I went to all Cajun Red by the 5th trip and boated more fish this past season then I have since the 2001 season. And red billed lures have always out produced the ones without on the Bay. But I usually fish in 15 FOW or less, and the water (on the average) is very clear.

[Dv8oR]

I am a certified scuba diver and have been down to a depth of 100'.

I didn't know that! Kewl! Geesh, you would think buddies would know this kind of thing of one another.

Sorry, didn't mean to squash the thread....Carry on Gentlemen!

[GLF]

I didn't know that! Kewl! Geesh, you would think buddies would know this kind of thing of one another.

Sorry, didn't mean to squash the thread....Carry on Gentlemen!

I got certified in 1987. I use to dive when I was stationed in San Diego.

[Bob's Outdoors]

This stuff about colors comes up periodically, and is pretty interesting.

Fortunately the fish don't read this stuff and still hit red baits 90 feet down.

[shu9265]

Last year, I bought some RED snap swivels, when I used these, I got hits like crazy, But, NO fish . When I went back to using the black ones, I got fish.

To prove a point, I used both colors at the same time. The same stingers, leads, and dipsey colors. The ones with the black swivels out did the red ones all week long. Since then I got rid of ALL the red swivels from my boat.

Just my 2cents to help muddy up the waters.

[Walleye Express]

Last year, I bought some RED snap swivels, when I used these, I got hits like crazy, But, NO fish . When I went back to using the black ones, I got fish.

To prove a point, I used both colors at the same time. The same stingers, leads, and dipsey colors. The ones with the black swivels out did the red ones all week long. Since then I got rid of ALL the red swivels from my boat.

Just my 2cents to help muddy up the waters.

Shu.

That doesn't muddy the waters at all. Theres just to many other variables from one body of water to the other to make any one of them universal. Color (IMHO) is only a very small part of the equation that trigger fish to strike or forage. Like I mentioned before, if fish had a rational, thinking brain, we'd never catch one.

[GLF]

Last year, I bought some RED snap swivels, when I used these, I got hits like crazy, But, NO fish . When I went back to using the black ones, I got fish.

To prove a point, I used both colors at the same time. The same stingers, leads, and dipsey colors. The ones with the black swivels out did the red ones all week long. Since then I got rid of ALL the red swivels from my boat.

Just my 2cents to help muddy up the waters.

Just curious....How deep was the water you are fishing?

[shu9265]

Between 40 and 70 FOW.

I tried to follow the schools and then after we got fish from one location, go and look for more in other locations.

There are a couple of us that try to find different schools of fish, that way if one is being stubborn, we can try another one.

Also make it a little more interesting than just going to one location over and over. It also give us a chance to experiment with different lure combinations

in different depths of water.

[LongLine]

The subject of Red underwater is very interesting. Humans can only see the “visible†spectrum with the 3 rod/cone groupings they have in their eyes. (hence humans call it the visible spectrum) Fish can see more of the light spectrum than we can see. Fish have at least 5 known rod/cone groupings. 3 have been determined for the same colors we see. The 4th has been established as sensitive to UV, which we can’t see. Scientists aren’t sure of the sensitivity of that 5th grouping yet, however some suspect it goes into the infrared range. If this is the case, fish can see shades of red much deeper that we give them credit for. (On a similar note - Anybody have one of those “blacklight paintings? Colors are quite pronounced to us when the light is on.)

2nd point is the fish’s eye. How it works. They move the cones/rods towards their spherical lens that gives them the ability to focus on near objects plus a binocular type effect where they can focus on distant objects at the same time. This coupled with the 5 rod/cone grouping indicates a very special type of vision.

Another point to ponder is whether the “red object†the fish is viewing is translucent, opaque or simply a reddish tinge such as a thin red paint job over a silver spoon. If translucent he probably won't see it. If solid, he'll probably see shades of gray. If the latter, then the fish might be seeing a reddish flash of some kind (like a red flashlight) on my killer spoons.