Are fish line shy?

[Spoonminnow]

I have to admit that though deep down I don't believe fish connect the connection to lures as something to avoid, I still prefer to use a fluorocarbon leader which is the least visible line in water. Superstitions persist even though experience should be evidence enough to believe that any monofilament - even brightly colored - will do as well as long as the test is low enough.

Even higher test lines have done okay in the past, but lower test lines have advantages, being less line shy not one of them. There is no point going to 2lb. test IMO and to be able to get lures unsnagged, 4 and 6lb tests seem to be adequate.

Funny how some bass anglers insist that fish identify a lure as one species of prey or another, but ignore hooks and other hardware as insignificant. Many probably believe that bass have a higher IQ than crappie, making crappie and panfish in general less of a challenge. Strange though is the fact that bass anglers routinely use higher pound test lines that are quite visible, thereby lowering the IQ of the fish that ignores the line and other hardware such as swivel snaps and split rings.

Fish are fish regardless the species and share physical attributes that include unique senses tailored to feeding in a water habitat. Intelligence applies to most higher animal forms (though less to some anglers that insist on matching the hatch). All predator fish are susceptible to lure characteristics such as lure action, size, presentation and contrasts to the environments such as vibration, color/ flash and motions, but being susceptible doesn't mean knowing.

Want to attach 10-20lb test to your crappie jig, be my guest, but I'm sticking with my fluorocarbon leader, just in case. lol

[cache22]

This can't be true for Crappie

"There are a lot of myths floating around out there (no pun intended) about fish. One myth is that the fish is a wily creature that is cunning and nearly impossible to catch unless one is intimately familiar with the habits of the fish and knows exactly what equipment and bait to use. Another myth is that the fish is an extremely picky eater that will only eat certain things, and it will only eat them if they are presented in a precise and totally natural manner.

Fact: fish are stupid. They have a brain about the size of a pencil lead, and the most intelligent fish on the face of the Earth is only marginally smarter than most fishermen.

Fact: fish will eat about anything. If a fish is hungry, and if something looks even vaguely like it might be food, a fish will bite it. The fish may be stupid, but it knows enough to know that, “Hey, if its food I’ll swallow it; if it’s not food I can always spit it out.” I have caught fish with bugs, worms, shrimp, chicken livers, canned corn, bacon, spam; I even caught a fish once with a piece of bubble gum. The fish doesn’t give a care. It just wants a meal."

[Progator135]

I think water clarity may have more to do with it. A hi-vis yellow in gin-clear water may yeild fewer fish. Down here in Louisiana, most of the water is stained. Many pro's swear by the bright yellow line and say it has never affected the bite. Im in the category of - Unless you just have to see the line, for whatever reason, detecting bites, or impaired vision, Id go with the most invisible you can get away with. Who really knows if a fish is down there avoiding your lure due to line color? Why take the chance. I use Mr. Crappie Camo 6lb. Love it. Get hung up in a brushpile and youll swear its 14lb test.

[Erin Brewer]

Im with Progator on this.... If you have crystal clear water it mite have something to do with the bite but here in mississippi the water is pretty much always murky or stained however you would like to explain it. Jigging I use 20lb spiderwire and absolutly love it! And the Mr. Crappie line is hard to beat I use the hi vis on all my spider rigging stuff, and pulling cranks and that stuff is tuff. The spider wire gives you unbeleavable feeling on a jigpole.

[Cane Pole]

Black DuPont nylon (1940's) still work. Didn't have any clear line when I wuz young. No problem catching fish. Solution to catching fish is changes.

Nothing changes unless something changes or nothing changes if nothing changes.

[CrappiePappy]

Ever have Bluegill bite your line where it enters the water ?? They're not actually interested or concerned about the line, they're hitting the distortion of the water's surface that's caused by the line breaking the surface tension ... why ?? ... because it "looks" like a bug on the water
They don't pay any attention to the line going down UNDER the surface, or the line hanging ABOVE the surface ... just the point where the line ENTERS the water & makes the surface tension dimple.

I've had Crappie follow/chase a Roadrunner, no more than a foot below the surface, for 15-20ft and even right beside the boat ... all while using hi-vis mono. I could clearly see the fish the whole distance, so I know it could see me ... and it definitely could see the boat. Didn't matter to the fish .... its concentration was on the fleeing Roadrunner.

Like Cane Pole ... I remember using black nylon line and catching fish. Along came monofilament line and it caught fish. I even remember the first 10lb test mono I ever saw, that an uncle of mine bought, and it was a dull PINK. (we always used 8lb test clear mono for Crappie, but my uncle preferred to fish for Bass) Regardless of the color, or even the pound test in some cases, the lines caught fish.

I've even caught Crappie in the clear waters of the Fall (Nov) on 20/6 Spiderwire, tied directly to the hook.

One point made is well taken .... unless you can see the fish turn away from the line (underwater) and KNOW that there are no other circumstances spooking the fish, then it's relatively impossible to know that the line itself was the reason for the fish being spooked. I mean, take into account the fact that there's likely miles of line hanging or entangled in the cover of your waters ... of all colors & size ... and strings of moss or algae on that same cover or floating free in the water. Do the fish avoid them ?? Or, do they simply ignore them & concentrate on what there is to eat, that might be in the vicinity ??

Fish don't have "smarts" ... they have base instincts. Those instincts can easily be overridden, or else we'd likely never catch those fish.

... cp

[Crestliner08]

Very interesting discussion. I've always addressed line size/kind as a form of depth & speed control, which is paramount to success when going after any species of fish. As a matter of fact, the late, great Elwood "Buck" Perry (of Spoonplugging fame) always said of his line, that he wanted the fish to see it, so that it could direct them to his lure.

For the record, I now use strictly braid with a fluorocarbon leader for all of my fishing these days, from panfish to pike. The sensitivity of braid, along with the abrasion resistance and reduced visibility of this leader material, put all the advantages in your corner - in my opinion anyway.

[toomanycasts]

I have to admit that though deep down I don't believe fish connect the connection to lures as something to avoid, I still prefer to use a fluorocarbon leader which is the least visible line in water. Superstitions persist even though experience should be evidence enough to believe that any monofilament - even brightly colored - will do as well as long as the test is low enough.

Even higher test lines have done okay in the past, but lower test lines have advantages, being less line shy not one of them. There is no point going to 2lb. test IMO and to be able to get lures unsnagged, 4 and 6lb tests seem to be adequate.

Funny how some bass anglers insist that fish identify a lure as one species of prey or another, but ignore hooks and other hardware as insignificant. Many probably believe that bass have a higher IQ than crappie, making crappie and panfish in general less of a challenge. Strange though is the fact that bass anglers routinely use higher pound test lines that are quite visible, thereby lowering the IQ of the fish that ignores the line and other hardware such as swivel snaps and split rings.

Fish are fish regardless the species and share physical attributes that include unique senses tailored to feeding in a water habitat. Intelligence applies to most higher animal forms (though less to some anglers that insist on matching the hatch). All predator fish are susceptible to lure characteristics such as lure action, size, presentation and contrasts to the environments such as vibration, color/ flash and motions, but being susceptible doesn't mean knowing.

Want to attach 10-20lb test to your crappie jig, be my guest, but I'm sticking with my fluorocarbon leader, just in case. lol

After stinking it up in a bass tournament, I went back out after the weigh in. Scrounged up some crappie jigs and tied the to 25lb big game. Promptly started dipping bushes and caught the heck out of them. Water was fairly clear too. Just two cents worth

[Spoonminnow]

They're not actually interested or concerned about the line, they're hitting the distortion of the water's surface that's caused by the line breaking the surface tension ... why ?? ... because it "looks" like a bug on the water

I always wondered why sunfish did that!!

The sensitivity of braid, along with the abrasion resistance and reduced visibility of this leader material, put all the advantages in your corner

That says it all for me.
I also go by the simple rule: light line for light lures; heavier line for heavy lures, if for no other reason than how the lure casts and acts in the water.

[H2oHammer]

in my personal opinion, fish DO notice line size. when they are in a frenzy hitting whatever, hungry...it doesnt seem to matter. but on those funky days, ive watch my father outfish us time after time after time with his usage of 1, 2 and 4lb tests. when crappies are smackin, ive had 8lb test on and it didnt matter. in fact, i have seen crappies in that frenzy mode to the point where a guy actually caught a 14 inch slabber on his DEPTH FINDER!! it grabbed on and never let go. gotta love the wisconsin river crappie scene. anyway, thats just my personal observation from my time on the water. line size matters if they arent in full on "kill" mode

brian