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Lets study the red/white lure...

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warriec

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Why do so many people think fish can't see color?confused.gif

 

 

 

How good is your color vision on dark nights? Or even on moonlit nights? wink.gif

 

Cold hearted orb

That rules the night

Removes the colours

From our sight

Red is gray and

Yellow white

But we decide

Which is right

And

Which is an Illusion

"…if catching fish is your only objective, you are either new to the game or too narrowly focused on measurable results.” - D. Stuver

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I have noticed that the majority of surf plugs have a red spray under the "chin". My take on that was the sign of gill plates which would indicate a fatigued/distressed fish, hence their vunerability which would provoke a strike.

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My theory is that redheads work well because I think... and think is key word here.. that they actually appear smaller and match the profile of smaller bait fish that may be present like silversides or mullet. This theory is based on red going back and contrasting agianst the white, which would be the dominant color that the fish sees agianst a dark murky background.

Oh and this theory is copyrighted by Nebe.. all rights reserved 2008. Nebe is a registered trademark of Nebetronics incorperated.

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View PostRed doesn't disappear. It just appears as black.

 

Red heads work due to contrast---the heads of bait fish appear a darker shade of grey than their bodies, to predator fish.

 

 

 

Contrast icon14.gif I'm a firm believer in contrast. Like white with a pink stripe, or a yellow plug with a white belly. I think the contrast between the lighter and darker shades plays a significant part

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In the absence(mostly absent) of light(night time) most colors take on shades of black to white even for humans who can see colors 100x's of times better than even the best color seeing fish. Even though fish can see colors the amount of colors a fish can see is species specific. Meaning a coral reef fish can usually see more color than say a striped bass. However, from what i have read even though they both can see colors their range is still drastically smaller than that of the human eye.

 

The study about striped bass that has been posted in is very intriguing but I couldn't find anywhere in the article where it says that striped bass do indeed see color. (I have read elsewhere that most fish can see color because they have cones and rods but striped bass would be on the very limited side of seeing any color) In the article they show that stripers react differently to different colors during the daytime which again is key because at night contrast of black to white is what is important. Which again most colors can been distinguished apart by their different grayscale appearance anyway.

 

My thought on the red head white body lure is that it provides a very strong contrast. In fact I will go as far as to say a black head white body plug would catch just as well. But it may not be as appealing to the fishermen himself. Have you ever seen a sickly baitfish? One that may have been attacked or is dying of other natural causes? The body usually turns to a more pale looking color while the head area retains more color compared to the body. That is where i think the red head white body lure gets is production from. Throw in the very slow retrieve(not many baitfish swim as slow as we reel them in unless they are dying anyway) and you have a great imitation of a dying baitfish.

 

John

Create instead of living off the buying and selling of others.......
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I think it's just one of those old things where old timers used red/white lures and caught fish so it became a staple.

 

man animals can see in color and also in ranges that we cannot.

 

some birds can see in ultraviolet range and can see a particular flower or food thats hidden behind other foliage.

 

so,to say that some fish can see in color must be true and is only natural especilly in predatory type fish.

 

look at the original daredevil,red/white!

 

H-H

An armed man is a citizen,,,an unarmed man is a subject,,,,,,,,

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View PostIn the absence(mostly absent) of light(night time) most colors take on shades of black to white even for humans who can see colors 100x's of times better than even the best color seeing fish. Even though fish can see colors the amount of colors a fish can see is species specific. Meaning a coral reef fish can usually see more color than say a striped bass. However, from what i have read even though they both can see colors their range is still drastically smaller than that of the human eye.

 

 

The study about striped bass that has been posted in is very intriguing but I couldn't find anywhere in the article where it says that striped bass do indeed see color. (I have read elsewhere that most fish can see color because they have cones and rods but striped bass would be on the very limited side of seeing any color) In the article they show that stripers react differently to different colors during the daytime which again is key because at night contrast of black to white is what is important. Which again most colors can been distinguished apart by their different grayscale appearance anyway.

 

 

My thought on the red head white body lure is that it provides a very strong contrast. In fact I will go as far as to say a black head white body plug would catch just as well. But it may not be as appealing to the fishermen himself. Have you ever seen a sickly baitfish? One that may have been attacked or is dying of other natural causes? The body usually turns to a more pale looking color while the head area retains more color compared to the body. That is where i think the red head white body lure gets is production from. Throw in the very slow retrieve(not many baitfish swim as slow as we reel them in unless they are dying anyway) and you have a great imitation of a dying baitfish.

 

 

John

 

John,I can dig what you're saying and I agree!

 

 

H-H

An armed man is a citizen,,,an unarmed man is a subject,,,,,,,,

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Color theory aside, I always assumed that red/white plugs were created to mimic illex squid on the spawn. If you've ever been squidding in Newport RI, you might know what I mean.

 

No matter what the colors look like in the water, it'll still match what a spawning squid looks like.

 

To that theory, this color combo might trigger an instinctive strike no matter what time of year they see it.

 

But that's like, my opinion, man.

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The distinction as to whether or not a fish can see color is moot, because red is the first color to fade to black, actually a dark shade of gray. So regardless of whether you see in color or not, the red head/white body lure will be some shade of gray and white - which gives it the contrast that will sometimes attract an attack.

 

While other color combinations appear to have a great deal of contrast in day-light to those who can see colors, it may actually have very little contrast in an environment with little light and where everything is some shade of gray.

America, the country so great that even its haters refuse to leave. 

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In the visible color spectrum we all know the ROY G BIV(Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo , Violet). Red being the smallest wavelength in the visible colors means it penetrates farther through water than the others down the line under similar water clarity conditions. In low light conditions, the colors which penetrate farther are more visible at distance. In no light conditions they all to one degree or another become contrast producers as they all turn black at some point. Take any color non-luminescent lure into a pitch black room and they all look black.

 

It also depends on the eye of the viewer and the proportionation of rods and cones in the retina. Different proportionations make certain colors on the spectrum more visible to the viewer than others.

 

I can't say what that is for stripers but here in the Great Lakes red is a low light producer for King Salmon for the reason of visibility at distance and black is a producer for reasons of contrast. I totally agree that Red becomes a contrast producer as light levels drop.

 

I would guess that the proportionation or rods and cones has evolved in each species to allow them to better visualize their prey based on prey color and available light.

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