match the hatch or imagination at work?

[senkosam]

I got into a big argument on the topic of lure choice on another forum in Calif. The angler insisted that the lure actions I posted matched prey-animal motions which convinced fish to strike. I kept pounding the reason (IMO) fish strike lures are many starting with the simple fact that fish are bullies!

He kept carping that fish want to eat the lures and for no other reason and assigned different prey actions to the lure actions I listed such as crankbaits and other swimbaits simulate prey fish. My answer:
Crankbaits, whether surface or subsurface, lipped or unlipped (Rat L Trap), typically have a tight or large side-to-side waddle. Prey fish to my knowledge glide through the water or suspend with the only motion being that of the gills and flicks of the tail. More important - NO FISH WADDLES - OR HAS RATTLES! Ever watch the action of a Chatterbait? !!!

Note: Swimbaits with boot tails such as the Sassy Shad shimmy vs waddle since the action-tail is in rear, not the front like with crankbaits. He insisted - with quite a bit of sarcasm that, lures in general, must appear as prey to predator fish and that consumption or hunger is the main reason fish attack.

When it comes to fish going after a lure because fish compare it to a real animal, it requires a large enough brain that can hold that information to begin with. No research has ever been done proving what a fish's brain is capable of such a simple thing such as adding 1 + 1 to get 2 or being able to [I]recognize/I] a lure to be a certain animal. For all a fish knows, a skirted jig hopped on the bottom could be a saltwater squid!

On another site the author's definition of a swimbait:

Swimbait is often defined by the fishing industry as fishing lures, normally plastic, but sometimes metal, that have been designed to imitate the look of and movement of fish. When you are placing them in the water, they have a paddle tail that moves back and forth just like a real fish. In fact, you will most likely say that this kind of bait looks very realistic in their motions.

(Note the italicized words.)

Question: what does a fish think a spinnerbait with large chrome blades is? A natural, realistic imitation of a prey fish? I think NOT! (not unless it or I am high on something.)

He goes on to say:

Veteran fisherman can tell if the swimbait is producing the right swimming actions - even the slightest differences in movement - and will look for the distinctions by watching how the tail and its vibrations are produced.

...the only partially accurate statement in the article meant to back up advertising, like so many fishing articles.

My view, on the other hand, is that fish are super-sensitive via the lateral line and swim bladder that detects the slightest motion of moving objects or the parts of objects. Fish vision is sharp and focused confirming what its motion detectors feel. It's like you or me slapping at something that landed on the back of our necks and then looking at the carcass to see what it was or swatting at it as it buzzes around our faces. The animal irritated us and paid the price - many times sight unseen like at night!

When many of you fused different soft plastic parts together using glue or heat, it wasn't to make a lure more natural or real-looking. It was to capture and hold a fish's attention long enough to push its strike-trigger, especially when fishing slows down like in colder water.
Example:
I started catching crappie, yellow perch and small bass - but only when I downsized a Crappie Magnet by one segment and changed to a lighter jighead. The water temperature was 52 degrees and fish weren't chasing trolled crankbaits in deeper water. At the end of 4 hours on the water, my counter showed 38 fish that wouldn't have been caught if I hadn't modified the lure and fished a certain part of the lake.
The double straight tail quiver of the Magnet we key along with size the other part of the lure design-equation. The slow, slightly erratic retrieve, with pauses, mid-depth in 6 FOW was the other thing that complemented lure lure's design. (The pads had all died and offered no cover.)

Thanks for reading. You guys are the most open-minded anglers I've ever had the pleasure of presenting ideas and suggestions to that you at least consider without prejudice or vitriol. Going on age 76 I no longer have the patience to deal with a. holes or B.S.!

[AUFred]

My experience in 60 years of fishing is more natural colorations catch more fishermen not necessarily more fish. I have caught fish on homemade contraption lures. I have caught fish on the old "Helicopter Lures", which resembled nothing. I have caught tons of fish on spinnerbaits & buzzbaits which I call reaction baits. Those in my opinion resemble nothing in nature.

I fish mostly ponds and have found a lot more topwater reactions on whites or yellows when flyfishing. Matching the hatch of course becomes important here if you fish dry flies. Soft plastics in the purple or chartreuse or watermelon colors work best and occasionally black those of course are fished more slowly. Hard baits with a little yellow or red seem to get me more strikes than more neutral colorations. Occasionally I will add red with a waterprrof marker to baits. I even like yellow or firetail plastics because they seems to bring a reaction.

For me line weights & color have a huge effect on whether I am successful on most days. If the water is gin clear forget anything heavier than 6# test. I am old school so I mostly fish monofilament.

I believe the match the hatch has its place but I don't believe the fish are smart enough to compare or notice minor differences. If you are following surfacing baits in the 3 to 4 inch class chunking a 10" swimbait probably is not getting you a strike.