San Juan Worms - Something To Think About

[hydropsyche]

Very interesting read. Especially that second link. I suggest everyone give it a read. Thanks for the link, Harps.

[uliwon]

a very long time ago, Gary fished the Bow with Rick Harding, a video came out of it, but so did the exposure of our then secret weapon...the completely unknown SJW!...we were pissed! but it still took years to catch on, thank god...and we fished them in every color of red and green, from #2 "konga" worms to #12 wee ones...

 

then along came Gord Kennedy...he spied the worms in a buddies box doing trips for him and next thing you know jacks them to Orvis as the 'Atomic worm'!

 

Gord had about as much to do with it as I did the Royal Coachman...my 12 yr old brother was selling film cannisters of 'Cobra' (the red mono we used) worms to guides for $10 doz when Gord was still shuttling guys to Islands near Jensen's in his little Metzler inflatable.

 

little history of the Bow river SJW...Just throwing it out there cuz' its good lore'

 

 

[BadSal]

Picked up the new Fly Fusion at the Crowsnest Angler for the weekend Barnaby trip. I was reading Gary Borgers article "The Fish as Prey" and noticed something interesting - and definitely new to me.

 

In talking about how water absorbs wavelengths of light differentially, he mentions that red light is completely sucked up by 3 feet down, and by about 30 feet down, only a little bit of blue light remains.

 

Then he says "Thus a red fly below 3 feet looks dark gray."

 

First thing I thought was "huh! so you're telling me San Juan Worms look dark gray in >3 feet of water?!"

 

Was thinking about it some more and it seems to me like the actual aquatic worms that the SJW is imitating are that dark gray/green color.. don't believe I've ever seen a red one. So I guess.. the color change of the red SJW's more closely resembles the naturals than other colors?

 

Did any of you read this article? What are your thoughts on it?

 

 

Does anyone scuba dive? I do, and I can GUARANTEE that you can see red and many other colors DEEP.

[birchy]

Does anyone scuba dive? I do, and I can GUARANTEE that you can see red and many other colors DEEP.

 

I used to, but haven't since I moved away from Cape Breton.

 

You're right and wrong.

 

You cannot see colors when you're deep just from the regular sunlight. However you can see colors when you're deep if you have a light with you and are shining it on objects - or if you have a camera flash.

However, if you or your buddy has something flourescent or neon on their gear, you can still see those colors at depth because ultra-violet light causes them to almost glow. I have a feeling this is what you may be referring to.

 

Here's a good article talking about it: http://www.deep-six.com/page77.htm

[Wolfie]

just add a bit of thought...in today's day and age they r making..'blue rubber worms as well as pink'....do they know something we are only guessing at?...........Pink worms kill steelies..blue worms kill large and small mouth bass!......

 

edit:..I just read the last link on colour...but are we forgetting that in this last link the 'water' is Salt water, not fresh, but all points taken ..yes colour changes by light reflections in both types of water.......Wolfie

[daxlarsen]

"3 feet" - this is the first time Ive heard red disappears at 3 feet. It depends on how bright the day is and the water clarity, but I think 10 - 20ft is more reasonable for red. We actually did tests in physics class in a swimming pool and you could clearly see red was red down at the bottom of the deep end. I guarantee you that blue and green light can be seen well past 30 feet ?????

 

Although I hate to argue physics with you as i'm just a construction worker, I would like to mention one notable point you missed. If you're talking about human eyesite you are correct in that green light spectrum is most easily viewed by our eyes and travles further and clearer than any other spectrum of lighting/color. I'm not sure if this is similar to a fish' sense of sight.

 

now what i said is kind of 2 different things about light spectrum and human eyesigth but I hope you get my point of a fish' perspective of the green/red/blue spectrum and how it varies as compared with our own.

 

as but a few hours ago I bought some rusty brown wire and thread to make some sanjuans and bloodworms cause i thought they would look more natural hahaha. but It shouldn't matter as the fish eat the worms in that natural color and in the bright red. It also might be worth mentioning that the various species of worms in the water have an assortment of shades and i've seen some light maroonish looking ones as well as some BRIGHT red ones that would be very similar to the red san juan that is so popular. although when we pumped a fish today it had a couple worms in it just like the one in the photo that one guy posted.

[Swede]

Trout and other freshwater fishes generally have three cone pigments, as do humans. Each cone pigment absorbs light most effectively at a specific range of light wavelengths. Colors refer to specific wavelengths as revealed when light passes through a prism. Brown trout and rainbow trout also have a fourth type of cone that absorbs ultraviolet wavelengths of about 355 nanometers. They can see light wavelengths that are completely invisible to us.

 

Freshwater fishes can better see colors towards the red end of the of the spectrum. Freshwater habitats are more suitable for the detection of red light because red wavelengths are not filtered out completely by shallower water. The organic substances that leach out of the soil further enrich the proportion of light at the longer wavelengths often giving the water a brownish or reddish appearance. Freshwater fish often have red coloration to act as obvious visual signals for other fish, particularly during spawning periods. Most marine fishes have retinal sensitivities that are strong on the blue side of the spectrum but lacking on the red side. While blue may hold its color the deepest in marine environments or a pool, thats not the case in freshwater. Also trout don't need as much light as we do to see colors at depth. Brown trout are probably the best night feeders and can feed by starlight.

 

Well I personally don't believe color is as important as size and shape I still try to match my colors as close as I can to the naturals. I still carry some funky looking streamers in reds and blues.

[RedBeard]

Lately I have been using brown SJW on sunny days and saving those reds for the darker cloudy days.. Seems to be working out!

[Chadillac]

red, i have been doing the same and she has been good to me too.

 

btw...is that a velvet fog in your profile pic? lol

[RedBeard]

It's my Longfield IPA home brew.. in a WR pint glass.