Can fish smell humans

[Guest Ken L]

In a similar vein, I've been thinking of splashing some of that pheramone aftershave on lures to see if it has any effect of the behaviour of pike.

Trouble is, going and buying the stuff is a bit like wearing a big sign that says "I can't pull".

[Guest Paul Williams]

Steve,

OK we will agree to differ! i would like to add though that ( again in my opinion)even with perch fry the only ones that are left behind are the ones damaged by attack from larger fish.

As far as scientific terms are concerned i have never been and never will be a scientific sort of angler....but i am always ready to talk about what i have seen.

[Guest Bruno Broughton]

Originally posted by Chris Sodo:

If fish can smell humans how come many of the best anglers I have met smoke like chimneys! Perhaps they're hooked on nicotine too.

 

Not quite, but carp (at least) are ATTRACTED by tobacco juice. And to anyone who thinks that science is bunk - don't bother trying instant coffee or saliva then, both of which also initiate a positive feeding reaction in carp.

 

As to Steve Burke's point about two different types of fish shoals... Actually, there are a number of reasons for (and descriptions of) fish shoaling behaviour, some of which are staggeringly complicated. Another day, maybe.

 

The L-serine stuff is not a theory; it's a fact. However, I guess its importance must be placed in context. Those who sweat heavily are more likely to be impaired by poor catches if the bait become contaminated by sweat; some baits - such as flake - will soak up sweat more than other (such as lures); other factors may over-ride the aversion to sweaty mitts (the association between fingers dabbling in an aquarium and food, for example); and - in running water - placing your hands underneath a fish (as in 'tickled trout') is unlikely to enable it to 'smell' you.

 

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Bruno

 

[This message has been edited by Bruno Broughton (edited 04 March 2001).]

[Guest paul mc]

if fish can detect l-serine how do they relate this to humans unless they are caught repetivly and can distinguish a link. I am not saying that this is not true because fish definitly link certian smell/tastes to danger.

This sounds like a good excuse for me to use next time i blank. My hands are covered in l-serine which stopped the fish taking my bait.

regards paul(sweaty hands)mc

[Guest mpbdsnu]

Whilst I agree fish have a sense of smell, the point (I think?) is whether fish can detect the smell of humans and whether it puts them off the bait!

 

As we know, their sense of smell is located in deep pits in the head, and fish can smell things in the water. These are basically two blind sacs called 'nares'. Nares are similar to our nostrils, except fish cannot breathe through them as they are not connected to the throat.

 

Whether they can detect smells from an external source (external to the water) is another matter! And in stark contrast to this is the fish's lack of memory span. If they are capable of recognising human smells, their memory retention is so poor, it has forgotten immediately after.

 

The term for smell and taste collectively is 'chemoreception' and is very well developed in fish and most rely upon this to detect their prey and/or danger. But fish are driven primarily by instinct not memory, and a classic example of this is the migratory salmon driven by an instinct to return to their birth waters.

 

If they were capable of associating fear with human smells, and the presense of L-serine indicated such, then we would never catch them.

[Guest globetrotter]

Fish can definitely detect the scent of humans....including lead, rubber, nylon, metals....etc. Each human has a distinct smell, slightly different from another. But as always, it is repetition - either visual or scent based (or both)of that exact same thing that becomes the deciding factor in causing a negative reaction from the fish.

[Guest mpbdsnu]

You are obviously an intelligent man Globetrotter - you are a photographer and an author. Could your writing be connected with fishing - if so perhaps you could give us a more detailed answer as to why you are so sure about your claims? Many thanks.

[Guest Chris Shaw]

Why do you think carp anglers fish into the wind, it is so the carp cannot smell you

 

 

 

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Chris Shaw

[Guest Simon Newbould]

Hmmm,

 

Interesting thread this one....

 

YES we have a smell and YES fish can detect that smell (NOT from an external source!).

 

It's well documented in scientific papers....and in angling literature.. Read Carp Fever, the chapter on Billing Aquadrome in the late 50's early 60's? Can't remember the guy's name but during his pre-baiting campaign with mashed bread his routine was always the same...sit and have a smoke, rub his hands in the mud and wash off in the lake water before baiting up.... He had 2 30's (I think) the first night he fished (in a storm).. No it doesn't prove anything, but it shows that anglers have known about this for years....

Another example - Jim Gibbinson won't fill up with petrol on his way to a session, he won't fish if he's been decorating recently and lots of other stuff..

 

I don't suppose it matters if you want to be mister average.... but if you want to catch occassionaly it's better to use every advantage you can...

 

Simon

[Guest Simon Newbould]

Just a thought...

 

mpbdsnu? are you on a wind up here?