Conference wahoo::fishing

    Jerry---
    Yes, bass coloration changes over the course of the year. Conditions
    affecting color in various ways include diet (or lack thereof), water
    temperature, and the general vitality of the fish. Even in uniform
    water temperatures, however, you will notice distinct differences
    between one fish and another of the same species if you pay enough
    attention.
    There is also a great deal of fluctuation in the appearance of fish of
    the same species in different bodies of water. For example, if you want
    to see common yellow perch so startlingly colored that you will at
    first think you have caught an errant tropical fish, try the Concord
    River in Middlesex County, MA. For smallmouth bass of phenomenally
    striking coloration, try the north end of Winepesaukee. I've found fish
    of both species in other bodies of water that looked as drab as most
    saltwater fishermen expect freshwater fish to be.
    
    John H-C

    I haven't seen any noticable difference of the Large-mouth colouration in 
    the lake I fish, however the Smallies vary from Black backs with gray
    undersides to green to golden brown.  
    
    I'll ask a Fisheries Biologist friend of mine the next time I see him
    and report back...
    
    Regards,
    
    Duncan  

 Coloration is affected in many fish by factors other than diet and environment-
one thing in particular that affects coloration in a very short time scale
is "mood." If you read enough articles about catching marlin, you will 
eventually find the phrase "really lit up" with respect to the fish. What this
means is that the coloration of the fish became very vivid as a result of the 
marlin getting excited by the bait. This occurs with many species of fish, and
not just as a result of excitement. Fear and aggression will also bring a
fish's colors out.

 You can observe this in an aquarium. When a new fish arrives on the scene,
the colors of the other fish will become more pronounced.

 It is very possible that on one day you can catch relatively drab colored
fish, and the next day you can catch fish in the same spot that are more
colorful.  (Indeed the color change can occur fast enough to be seen by the
naked eye- ask a scuba diver.)

 It may be that you are remembering fish that you caught when the water was
really warm and the fish were sluggish and comparing them to ones you caught
that had a different diet (time of the year) and were more apt to become
more deeply colored.

 The Doctah

Thanks for the information; It's good to hear that I might be
recalling things correctly, and that I'm not necessarily losing
my mind. I suspect that anyone who had seen/heard my "dance of
joy" Saturday after I released my biggest bass so far, might
have reached a different conclusion though. Especially since
I almost danced into the ice-water... :^)

Jerry

    re .3
    I'm a scuba diver. My earlier comments were based on "naked eye through
    the mask" observations of bass. Bass, in my experience, do not change
    coloration "on the fly" as your comments on marlins suggest.
    Bass are extremely curious, gregarious fish, and it is quite common to
    find oneself surrounded by them. If the diver sits still for a few
    moments, one or two of the bass will approach the diver's face mask to
    within inches. This makes them very easy to observe.
    
    What a startled bass does is shit. Drops a glob as if it were ballast
    and then disappears in a microsecond. I've yet to see one change color
    in a flash.
    
    I should also have pointed out in my first response to this note that
    the ambient light dramatically affects your perception of fish
    coloration, especially in bass, which as a rule do not show sharp
    foreground/backround contrasts in their markings.
    
    Hope this helps.
    
    John H-C

      Re. Largemouth..
      
     I've never seen one change while I had it in my possession, but I've
    seen 'em come out of various lakes 'n rivers in various different
    colors...from almost black, through various shades of green, to almost
    white...
    
      Remember that this is the "Black Bass", and in some parts of the
    south it is till known to this day as the "Green Trout". 
    
      One of the neat things about this species is the different
    colorations...
    
    JMcD

    Something I forgot to point out earlier....
    It makes a lot of sense that you see a bass change color after you
    catch it. If you keep it on a stringer, in a "live basket," or a live
    well, you're still submitting the fish to a new water temperature for
    an extended period and less oxygen than it is used to.
    
    People change color when they're deprived of oxygen, too.
    
    John H-C

    	I was at the Bass Seminar that I put in here earlier, this past
    weekend.  The guy giving the talk (Mike Yellick) mentioned about Bass
    being different colors.  He said it's based on their surroundings.
    
    	The Bass is somewhat like the Chameleon, it tends to always want to
    blend into the background it inhabits.  This enables it to be more
    effective at being a Preditor.  What the bass sees in it's eyes, is what 
    triggers it to change it's colors.
    
    						regards,
    							Madd Matt
    

    Smallmouth often change color after being in livewells for a little
    while.  I have always equated this to a chameleon effect, repsonding to
    the color of the interior of the livewell, as opposed to oxygen 
    depletion.  I'm not saying that fish do not loose color when deprived
    of oxygen, I wouldn't know.  
    
    But I'm sure that a "good" livewell can oxygenate the water well beyond 
    the normal level of most bodies of water. 
    
    -donmac

    True, the bass must have water passing thru the gills to strain/absorb
    oxygen, however, it is not necessary for bass to be swimming all of the
    time.  Different species have different tolernces and different method 
    of extracting oxygen. 
    
    On one end of the spectrum you have fish like shark which do not have 
    the ability to flare their gills (I believe their gills are like
    staitionary strainers) and therefore must be moving at all times

    On the other end of the spctrm, some lower species such as Pickeral and 
    catfish can absorb oxygen through their skin (as well as gills) - this 
    is one reason they are less prone to winterkill.  Catfish will often bury 
    themselves in mud during the winter.  
    
    I think the bass fall into the middle of this spectrum.
    
    For a couple of years, I kept bass in an aquarium that was plenty large 
    enough for the fish to swim around freely.  
    
    One of the things that I observed was that the bass could often sit in 
    one place for hours on end - flaring it's gills to maintain the water 
    flow necessary to absorb oxygen.
      
    Between what I have read, my observations of the bass in my aquarium, 
    and seeing my livewell occasionally nearly 'froth' with bubbles while 
    circulating in freshwater, I would still maintain that bass in a well 
    functioning livewell should not be starved of oxygen. 
    
    In-fisherman might have covered this at one time or another, if I think 
    of it tonight I'll do a search.
    
    -donmac

    I have noticed that in the spring the bass up in this area seem to have
    more pronounced color then during the winter or summer.  I am not sure
    but I think some of the coloring may be to intice a female to his bed.
    Tonight I caught three and two of them had a very bold latral line and
    the rest of the color patterns were bright.  I know it is to early for
    the spawn but this was something I noiced last year when I fished
    Manchaug in the spring, but come summer and fall the fish were more
    even green.   What do you think??
    
    Les

    
       More pronounced color during spawn?? I don't think the actual
       spawn has anything to do with it. I know when I spawn I get a little
       flush !! ha ha (sorry). I still think over 90% of the coloring is
       do in part to its suroundings.
    
    
                                                            Kiv

       I've read several studies that say the Bass changes color to match
    it's surroundings.  One study even mentioned a large bass that was
    blind in one eye and was always almost white on that side but had
    normal coloration on the other side.  I believe the "what they see and
    available light theory".  Nighttime, deep water, or really discolored
    water and the Bass are pale.  A-1 is a good example of this, dark
    water with almost no light penetration and the fish are almost white.
    Shallow clear water and a lot of sun, like Manchaug at spawning time,
    and the colors are vibrant.
    
    				B.C. 

    I believe the lateral line assists fish in sensing vibrations, i.e. an
    injured baitfish, your partner dropping a tacklebox on the bottom of
    the boat, etc.
    
    Tim
    

     I think that lateral line is an unfortunate choice of words here
    because "lateral line" has a strict physiological meaning which is common
    to all fish. Perhaps lateral stripe is a better term. Tim's correct
    about the function of the lateral line; it is a sensory device used to
    locate prey as well as approaching predators. The lateral stripe of
    darkened coloration on the largemouth bass, to the best of my
    knowledge, has no physiological function beyond that of simple
    coloration.
    
     The Doctah

    Last year I caught a nice bass (6 lbs) at my cabin. It had beautiful
    coloration with a very distinct lateral line. Since my father was
    coming up the following morning, I decided to put the fish in a 
    3'x3'x3' cage that I happened to have handy, so that I wouldn't be
    accused of "exaggeration". The next morning, I pulled him up and was
    astonished to behold a fish that was shaped like a bass but looked like
    a golden shiner (no sarcastic comments- it WAS a largemouth bass). The
    lateral line had completely disappeared overnight.
    
    Since I caught the fish in a rocky area but left him overnight in about
    6' of water over sand, I concluded that bass did indeed change color to
    match their surroundings. Since he still had lots of strength, I
    released him to catch again this year.
    
    I've caught bass in lots of different kinds of water throughout the
    South and New England and have seen lots of color variation, but always
    attributed it to things like diet or water composition.  Apparently
    they are also chameleons.
    
    Chris