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| Bass Sense |
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| Written by Terry Battisti |
| Monday, 18 May 2009 20:25 |
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(Ed.: World renowned trophy bass hunter Mike Long talks about a bass’ senses – sight, smell, taste, hearing, lateral line – and how to use these senses to possibly land the fish of a lifetime.) “The 8-inch swimbait flies through the air and impacts the water with a splash heard around the lake. After letting the bait sink a few seconds, the angler begins a slow methodical retrieve – the bait barely under the surface.
Fifteen feet from the boat, the fish kicks hard twice with its tail – moving in for a closer look – and then backs off, heading away from the boat. The fish was definitely interested but why didn’t it take? Was it the lure’s smell, vibration or did it not look realistic enough? Maybe it was a combination of all three. In any event, the fish didn’t fall for the imitation and more than likely, we’ll never know why. This scenario happens all of the time, and not just on the big bass waters of California. In fact, for the number of times we see it happen, just think how many times it happens when we don’t see it. Mike Long adamantly feels that a lot of these fish can be caught if we take the time to understand how a fish uses its senses. In the following paragraphs he gives us a short class on the physiology of the largemouth bass. Sight “A bass’ primary sense is its sight,” Long said. “Especially big fish. The reason for this is a bass is one of the few creatures where its eyes continue to grow throughout their life. This is why those 16-pound-plus fish you see in pictures look like they have bug eyes. That’s not some medical condition – it’s the direct result of their eyes growing longer than their skull. “This biological anomaly helps these fish in a few ways,” he said. “They have a greater than 180-degree field of vision in each eye and because the eyeball is bigger they can see more detail. So, who knows if a bass gets smarter as it gets older but we do know a bass’ vision gets better with age. “Bass can also distinguish color,” he said. “Colorblind animals only have rods in their eyes where animals that see color have both rods and cones – bass have both rods and cones. I’ve also read where a bass’ eyes can receive 5-times more light than a human’s eye. And this, scientists feel, allows them to see shades of color much better than a human.” Lateral Line “The lateral line system is comprised of two components – the head component and body component,” Long said. “Almost everyone is familiar with the body component, the line of pores the stretches from the head down to the tail. These pores are connected to the nervous system and can register pressure waves in the water. The pressure waves, once they hit the pores and register in the brain, give the bass a sense of the direction in which the wave came from. This component of the lateral line is used for long distance determinations. The head-component of the lateral line, on the other hand, is used for close proximity detection. It’s cells are located on the jaw, around the eyes and the top of the head.” Hearing Hearing is done through the inner ear of the bass,” said Long. “Unlike ears of humans, a bass’ ears are not open to the environment but closed to the environment. Their ears consist of ear bones called otoliths, sensory hair cells and cilia. The otoliths, rest in the skull and ride on the sensory hair cells. When a sound is transmitted through the water, the ear bone moves at a different rate than the fish and the movement is interpreted as sound. The ear bone’s size is dependant on the specific fish and also the size of the fish – the bigger the fish, the bigger the otoliths. “What is less known about how fish interpret sound is the fact that bass use their air bladder in sound determination,” he said. “Most people think that the air bladder is only for buoyancy. This is not true. In fact, the inner ear of a bass is connected directly to the air bladder. Fish of this type are called hearing specialists. One reason bass are so easily spooked, even in dirty water.” Smell / Taste “A bass’ olfactory system is encompassed by its sense of smell and taste – two systems that are not connected to each other,” said Long. “Bass smell via small ducts between the eyes and upper jaw bone. As a bass swims, water is forced through the nostril against hair receptors called cilia. But, even when a bass is at rest, water flows through these tiny ducts. Like in the lateral line and inner ear, these cilia are connected to the nervous system and can detect minute changes in the smell (chemical make up) of the water. “Taste, on the other hand, is sensed through the many taste buds located in the mouth, on the jaw and on the tongue,” he said. “Smell and taste are used for different purposes. Smell for detecting odors far away and taste for sensing articles in their mouths. “As with a bass’ eyes, the older a bass gets, the larger its olfactory system becomes. This may also play into why older bass become harder to catch. “Bill Murphy was the most ardent scent user I know of,” he said. “I learned a lot from him scent wise. He religiously put scent on his bait after each cast. I’ve even gone to the trouble of scenting my line. I want as much scent in the water as possible.” Conclusions “We don’t whether or not a bass can learn or if they have intelligence, but we do know that as a bass gets older and grows, all of its sensory organs get bigger,” Long said. “The bigger they are the better they operate – thus, in my opinion, making the fish harder to fool. If you take into consideration all of the senses a bass has and use them to your advantage, your chances of hooking a fish of a lifetime will increase tremendously. “Trophy bass are just like any other trophy animal hunted by man,” Long concluded. “They are generally the smartest animals in the population and, because of this, not only require a special understanding of how they react in nature but what advantages their physiology gives them. Yes, anyone can go out and get lucky by catching one trophy fish but it is the person that puts the time into studying their prey that is set apart from the crowd. These are the anglers that catch multiple trophies.” Sources Below are some sources for those who want to learn more about the senses of fish. For more detailed sources, please consult your library or local college. http://www.parmly.luc.edu/parmly/lat_line_phys_anat.html |
| Last Updated on Monday, 18 May 2009 20:35 |
As the bait gets closer to the boat, the angler picks up the sight of a large black object following the fake trout imitation just under the surface. The angler’s heart races as the bait nears the boat, hoping the giant underneath will attack his offering before it hits the end of the rod.