Three
Main Trout Senses
By
Brett Fogle
An angler should therefore become familiar
with the three main senses a trout uses. These are:
Smell:
Trout have amazing powers of smell. For
humans, trying to understand smell underwater is rather
difficult since we can’t do it. However, trout have no
difficulty smelling underwater,so it is worth an anglers time to make sure
that they aren’t introducing foreign smells into a trout stream
(which can warn a trout to a lurking danger such as a
fisherman.)
When fly fishing for trout, do your best to
avoid any artificial smells that are completely foreign
to a trout stream. Avoiding these smells, though, of
often easier said than done, as the sources of these
smells can come from many sources. Fly line cleaners, fly
floatants, epoxies and glue can all contribute alien
smells to a trout stream. Other things such as
aftershave, deodorant and even the smell of your clothing
can all tip off a trout that an angler is
near.
Obviously, you can’t get rid of all foreign
smells you may introduce into a trout stream. However,
there are a number of easy things a fisherman can do to
reduce the likelihood of a trout getting wise due to
smell. When using fly line cleaners and fly floatants,
use the newer ones that are designed to "mask" the
chemical smell. The cleaners and floatants are usually
the same price as other "non-masking" chemicals, but can
go a long way towards reducing the likelihood of a trout
becoming alert to the fisherman due to smell.
Also, before hitting a challenging trout
stream, it never hurts to leave the cologne and other
fancy deodorants back in the hotel room. On a challenging
trout stream, an angler needs every edge they can get,
and avoiding strange smells to finicky trout is a good
way to do this.
Remember, trout have very powerful senses
of smell. It is only logical that they will use this
sense to identify flies presented their way to determine
whether or not is something that is good to eat. A funny
smelling fly, due to either chemical floatants or
inadvertently smelling like Old Spice, is a good way to
send a trout away from your fly and onto more "naturally"
smelling food.
Sight:
Sight is of crucial important to trout,
which is not surprising. After all, it’s the sense that
they use when determining whether or not to eat something
that comes their way. Trout, in particular, have
excellent close-range vision although they lack in
long-range vision. This close range vision by the trout
is why so many imitation flies may fail to grab the
interest of a trout – the trout can easily determine if
given time if the fly looks like something it is
accustomed too.
A trout sees the world through what is
known as the "trout’s window". This window is a cone
shaped view that extends up from the eye at an
ever-increasing diameter. Thus, the deeper the trout is,
the more the trout can see.
A trout will only eat something that passes
within this cone of vision since this is where they can
see it and inspect it. Due to their other excellent
senses, trout may very well be aware of something on the
water that is outside of this cone of vision. But a trout
consider eating it if it sees the fly in their cone of
vision.
This knowledge leads to one strategy all
anglers should use when fishing to rising trout. When fly
fishing to a rising trout, it is very important to drop
the fly not where the rise was but upstream of where the
rise was. By presenting a fly upstream from the rise, the
fly will float down the river naturally, not just
suddenly appearing in the trout’s cone of vision, which
is likely to seem suspicious to a cunning
trout.
Trout also have the ability to determine
color, including subtle shades of color. This is why the
same fly in two different colors can produce remarkably
different results when fishing, the trout may simply be
eating one color insect and avoiding others.
Lastly, trout also have the ability to see
the profile of a fly. Of all the characteristics of a
fly, this is perhaps the most important. A fly that does
not have the same profile as seen from underwater
compared to what they are accustomed to eating, is not
likely to be very successful. For this reason, it is
always important to make sure that your flies float
properly, especially when dry fly fishing.
Moreover, even if your dry fly is a
spitting imitation of the real thing, it is not likely to
draw strikes if your fly floats awkwardly (or partially
sinks).
This is a good reason to avoid the real
cheap flies you may see - the colors of these cheap flies
may look right, but the profile is likely to be wrong
when on the water.
Sound:
Trout have an acute sense of hearing that
is well worth understanding. Trout have two sound
receptors. The first one runs along the length of the
fish’s body. This receptor picks up frequency vibrations
– such as the banging of rocks or oars against a boat. A
second receptor, located inside the trout’s ear, is used
to detect the movement of aquatic insects which the trout
eats. This receptor is extremely acute, allowing the
trout to hear sound frequencies well outside the human
hearing range. This hearing receptor of the trout is what
allows the fish to find food even in very murky
water.
Because trout have such acute senses of
hearing, anglers need to keep several things in mind when
fishing for trout.
First, trout can’t hear human voices
outside of the water. Thus, having a loud conversation
about something along the bank of a river will not spook
the trout.
Second, trout are acutely aware of
vibrations and sound that occur in the river. Banging
oars on the side of a boat is a wonderful way to alert
the trout to your presence, thus spooking them. Likewise,
great care should be taken when wading. Wading loudly,
either caused or by the splashing of the water or the
movement of rocks beneath the angler’s feet, is easily
heard by a trout – especially in slower moving water. In
fast water, these vibrations tend to get drowned out by
the current and rapids. But in slower water, such as runs
or spring creeks, it is crucial that an angler take care
when wading.
Third, trout are easily able to hear things
that fall into a river, especially in slower water. A
nearby trout can readily hear a grasshopper or other bug
that falls into the river. Because of this, care must be
taken in casting to prevent the fly line from making a
splash in the water or from having the fly itself strike
the river at full force. A gently dropping fly is far
more likely to attract the attention of a trout than one
that gets slammed into the river due to a bad cast or too
heavy of a fly or fly line.
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About The Author
Brett Fogle is the publisher of Fly Fishing
Secrets, an insiders guide to fly fishing tips and
techniques of the pros. To sign up for free fly fishing
tips and other articles, please visit www.fly-fishing-secrets.com.
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