Smarter Fish (inspired by FFing Humane?)

[Wild One]

In light of noy hijacking a previous thread, I have this question. Maybe some biologists can chime in here. Do you think that fish can really get smarter? Do they learn from previous experiences? I've heard a lot of people (including myself) say that bigger older fish are harder to catch because they are smarter and have "seen more than those little youngsters." If they don't have the capacity of memory that we do, how could a 5 year old fish remember "Oh I know that fly, it landed me in a heap of trouble once when I was a young buck. I'm leaving it alone!"

OR

Are they sometimes harder to catch because they have more body to feed and use more energy and so become more selective of the food they eat? Crap, even that term "selective" implies thinking through the possible outcomes of a decision. All right, its lunch time....I'm thinking WAY too much.

But, what do you guys think?

[Wild One]

Oooohh,

Or are they really not harder to catch, but just less of them out there (in terms of volume) so we think we they are harder to catch. But really, there just aren't a lot of them out there....

[MikieFinn]

yes fish can learn without remebering specifics.

Would you touch pot cooking on the stove? Of course not - you have learned long time ago that it would burn ant that burns hurt.

NOW: Can you remember all the times you got burned in order to learn this?

Of curse not.

It is similiar with the fish. Even if they do not remember specifics they just "know" that some things are dangerous.

[Eric-WD]

I have a number of theories no answers

a lot of those little fish just came from a place where people threw food to them, they arn't conditioned to be afraid of people waveing sticks or anything else

according to an orvis book on reading water, fish use a pecking order with the bigger fish geting the best spots, thus they can me more picky about what they eat beceause they have the most to choose from, the little ones have to take whats left.

the most careful fish will last the longest and grow the biggest. aka survival of the most fit. We once had a family of chipmunks living outside our cabin on the Oregon coast, the first eaten by an owl was the one that was the least careful. The one that stayed out longest and sat in the highest trees.


I know that I have caught the same fish on the same fly with in an hour, I know he didn' t learn.

Eric

[Gramps]

What I don't understand is how they can be so picky with flies, and then take a spinner which doesn't look like anything in the water.

edit..Spinner being the lure type. Not the fly.

[Wild One]

Here is an intersting article that I found from UK newpaper:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jh ... xhome.html

I guess this kind of blows my thoughts of the water...

[Gramps]

I shouldn't have read that.

[FlyPimp]

What I don't understand is how they can be so picky with flies, and then take a spinner which doesn't look like anything in the water.

edit..Spinner being the lure type. Not the fly.

What's worse is watching a fish repeatedly take a certain type of bug, matching that bug perfectly, having the fish refuse your bug. Giving up and tying something on that doesn't hatch for 4 weeks and having the fish take on the first drift

I think they've got a descent short term memory, but I doubt they have much of a long term memory

[Bamboozle]

Smart fish is a myth perpetuated by fisherman that want to feel better about their abilities and catches; or to use as an excuse for getting skunked.

Intelligence and an organism?s ability to cognitively learn are very subjective terms as opposed to instinct or simple learned behavior. The mere fact you have to catch a fish to determine its place on the IQ scale doesn?t really help its chances for inclusion in the Mensa Society.

If you can?t catch a particular fish, is it because he is smart?

?or you are ineffective??

I have had virtual Einstein fish of all of 4? stymie my efforts at catching them all day until I either gave up or they finally succumbed; possibly to mock me. These fish were mere babies with parr marks and Pampers who were way too young to be versed in the ways of a wily trout?

?unless of course they were the elusive Pennsylvania Piscatorial Pygmy species???????

I have also caught the same moronic 20? trout TWICE on the same day with one hand tied behind my back; while slightly inebriated and feinting from heat exhaustion from smoking a cigar in 95 degree heat.

?maybe this fish just was unhappy with his life and wanted to end it all but didn?t have the fingers to pull the trigger on his gun so decided to get caught and eaten. His bad luck was to run into a C&R fisherman; TWICE!

Possibly the question should really be:

Are there smart fish and stupid fish?

OR

Are there smart fisherman and stupid fisherman?

[Wild One]

I shouldn't have read that.

Sorry Gramps. Just don't let this article be the reason you stop fishing....

Just remember all those times before when you felt so close to nature and so "at peace" on the water. Maybe you'll feel better...