Color Vision in Trout

[Zach Matthews]

I have pitched an article on the way trout perceive color several times, but I’ve never had an editor bite on it.

[andrew stoehr]

Hmm.  As a scientist who studies animal color (and therefore by necessity, a little about color perception), I’m having trouble with this and I’ve barely gotten through the first paragraph.

“Color is physiological effect” ?  That’s not how we define it.

Rainbows look as they go because the wavelengths overlap?  How would he describe how a prism works?

Anyway, I’ll take a look at the rest of it.

But, my hunch about fly lines is that they’re colored the way they are because fishermen can see them better, not because they’re harder for the trout to see them.  If you’re under them (as the trout are) looking up at an opaque fly line against the sky, it’s probably going to look largely the same – as a dark line – no matter what color it is.  Some light is going to reflect onto the underside of the fly line, but mostly, it will just be an opaque line.

Andrew

Edit: I’ve now read it.  I don’t know the literature on trout vision, but I’m always skeptical of articles like this one that don’t provide their sources.  At the end, he makes reference to this book by Curry about UV.  There was some discussion of this book by the guy who blogs at “Turning over small stones”, who is a biologist (Curry is not, as far as I know). It’s even more dense than Trout U article, but it’s at least referenced, and written by somebody who knows how to navigate the scientific literature:

http://turningoversmallstones.blogspot.com/2009/09/ultraviolet-vision-and-trout.html

[Zach Matthews]

Interesting, thanks Andrew.

Zach

[Scott K.]

On this topic, what good books have you guys read on fish behavior?  

Specifically, have you guys found anything newish that fits the bill?  The best thing that I’ve been able to find is Through the Fish’s Eye, which is a bit dated, though has pretty tremendous content.  

[Michael Phillippe]

The last chapter of Arlen Thomason’s book ” Bug Water” has a nice explanation of how trout see insects. Thomason, like me, is a biochemist so perhaps I just understand his way of writing, but I think it’s a concise, readable explanation.

[Colin M.]

Trout on the delaware eat grey comparduns during a sulpher hatch as long as they are the same size.

[andrew stoehr]

Trout on the delaware eat grey comparduns during a sulpher hatch as long as they are the same size.  Case closed…

That’s impossible.

[Colin M.]

Those patterns are to catch fishermen!

[Author]

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