50 Fishy Facts

Maybe you'll never be able to outfish your best fishing buddies, but you might be able to one-up them in the fish trivia department with the following 50 tidbits. No doubt your friends will be amazed by your vast archive of wisdom. Otherwise, these factoids might simply provide a way to kill time when the fish aren't biting. Who knows? Some might even help you put a few more fish in your boat. Have fun!

1 ON THE COOL SIDE White and striped bass are members of the temperate bass family, as opposed to black bass, which belong to the sunfish family. The term "temperate bass" refers to the moderate water temperature preference of members of this family. As a rule, they gravitate toward temperatures a little lower than those favored by largemouth or smallmouth bass.

2 SEE IN THE DARK Walleyes are known for their marble-like eyes, which let them see well in dim light. Their retinas have a layer of reflective pigment, called the tapetum lucidum, that intensifies any light the eye receives. (It's the same membrane that causes a cat's eyes to glow yellow.) But the sauger, the walleye's close relative, has even better night vision because the tapetum covers a much larger portion of its retinas.

3 BLACK, BUT JUST BARELY Ever wonder where the term "black bass" came from? The fry of smallmouth bass turn coal black within a few days after they hatch. Even though the fry of largemouths and other bass species do not turn black, all members of the group (genus Micropterus) are referred to as black bass.

4 ORANGE DELIGHT Researchers studying walleye vision found that orange is the color most visible to walleyes, followed by yellow and yellow-green. Small wonder so many chartreuse and orange lures fill the tackle boxes of savvy walleye fishermen.

5 AN EAR THAT CAN'T HEAR The "ear" of a sunfish is really not an ear at all, but merely an extension of the gill cover that varies in color from species to species. The redear sunfish, for example, gets its name from the distinct red margin on its ear.

6 VIVE LA DIFFERENCE Everyone knows that smallmouth bass love rocks, but in waters where the bottom is almost all rock, they could be anywhere. In such lakes or rivers, smallmouths will often gravitate to dissimilar structure such as a sandy bottom with weeds or wood cover.

7 MUD CATS IN NAME ONLY Flatheads are often called mud cats, giving anglers the impression that they scavenge dead food items off the bottom. But flatheads are more apt to eat live fish than any other catfish species. Channel cats are most likely to consume dead, stinky food (and bait) and blue cats are intermediate in their food preference.

8 LIGHTS OUT? LET'S EAT Research has shown that a sudden decrease in light level triggers walleyes to bite. That explains why the fish usually turn on just as the sun is disappearing below the horizon and the light intensity is rapidly decreasing. It also accounts for the hot bite that starts when the dark clouds roll in before a thunderstorm.

9 NOT SO SPECIAL Trout are the only kind of fish with an adipose fin, right? Wrong. Several other fish species, including catfish, bullheads, madtoms, smelt, ciscoes and whitefish, also have an adipose fin (the small fin on the back just in front of the tail).

10 IN-BETWEEN WHISKERHEADS Catfish are generally considered to be bottom feeders, but that's not necessarily true for blue cats. Blues tend to roam open water more than other catfish species, and commercial fishermen often catch more blues on trotlines fished near the surface than on those fished tight to the bottom.

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