Fish can see above the water as well as below it, fish also can see only (we’re told) in black and white. A human eye has thousands of optic nerves. So does a fish. A human eye contain fibres that contain red, blue and green optic nerves. The greatest in the order listed. The fish has similar optic fibres but sees only in black and white. So red is more prominent than blue or green.

I recently took some photos of three snooker balls with black and white film. I took several photos with various coloured filters. The majority of photos show that the red ball was most prominent and the green the least prominent. So where do we go from here?
What can it see?
I fished a small river two days before Xmas with my fishing buddy. Chub were the order of the day. Between us we caught seventeen fish, the heaviest a pound and a half. Nothing to write home about I hear you cry, but all these fish looked like they had just come from the manufacturer, scale and fin perfect.

Boxing day I returned alone. I arrived at the same swim at 6.30. It was still pitch black. Perfect, I crept into place behind an oak tree, the fish couldn’t see me anyway, it was too dark. I had my rod set up in the car so all I had to do was position my nets and open up the bait tubs. Two pints of hemp and half a pint of red maggots.

I trickled small handfuls of hemp until daylight. When it was light enough I cast in. Two maggots on a size 18 hook. From behind the tree I had a trot of around 30 feet, but after 10 feet the float disappeared and a plump chub was brought to my net. I didn’t have a bite a chuck but in three hours had fourteen chub.

Strange as it was, they didn’t look like the chub caught two days previously. As I was packing up I heard a voice, “why didn’t ya say you were coming?” It was my fishing buddy who looked at the spoils and declared too that they looked different to the previous catch.So how did I catch a bounty of top condition fish?

  1. Dress for the occasion. there is no point going out in jazzy track suits and the like. Try greens or camouflaged clothes. I wear the Realtree camouflage clothing. You can blend in the environment brilliantly.
  2. Keep off the skyline. As mentioned at the top of this article fish see above and below the water. I was able to hit my swim in the dark unseen by fish but this may not be possible at all times.
  3. If you have to peg down get as low as possible so as you do not break the horizon. Fish live in the water day in day out. You fish it a couple of hours a week. They know if something doesn’t look right, like an anglers swede stuck in the air.
  4. Conceal shiny objects such as jewellery, glasses, watches, etc. I wear glasses for work but use contact lenses at other times.
  5. Use the local environment to your advantage. If possible get in the cover of trees and reeds, weeds, etc. Again a fish knows what it’s habitat looks like, a rod sticking out of nowhere doesn’t look right. A rod blended with the trees and reeds is covered.
  6. Move slowly and quietly. If you move slow enough you can almost sit on top of your prey. Move fast and clumsily and your prey has gone.

Hope this is helpful to you all and if anyone has a point to raise, or would like any further help, please contact me.

Ade Spencer

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