kb here    does a fish know that the temp is 55deg not 25 deg  in winter   do they think it is spring or fall  or do they know it is wintertime here in indiana kb

Bass are cold blooded and know that when the water temp cools off the metabolism slows down and when the water heats up they need to eat more because their metabolism is high. They know that when it is hot some areas have less oxygen and temps are not to their liking. Bass know that when the food is gone go find them. Bass have a comfort zone that they like and one that they don't. If you have a warm trend and the bass move up thinking that it will be a mild winter it is because the temperature has become more tolerable and the bait has moved up. If you have a long span of warm weather and warm water temp bass will move up early and spawn early.

There are two factors that tell bass, one is water temperature as explained by Chris, the other one is the ammount of available light hours in a day, fish have pineal gland, this gland is where the biological "clock" of the animal is located and it works depending upon the exposure to a certain ammount of light hours, fish know in which season they are just because winter days have less light hours than summer days.

I don't think that a bass " knows " anything. They do not function as we do or how PETA for example portrays them. I think when it is cold the basses body metabolism adjust because they are cold blooded and adjust to that specific situation. I think anything a bass does is through a primitive system that is programed for the basics. Self preservation, food, cover and procreation. I feel that a bass cannot reason except for these basic genetically passed on basics. I agree with Raul. The Pineal gland reacts to length of days as well as water temps maybe as well. I do not understand why humans  try to portray fish like they actually have a reasoning and thought process as humans do. The real world for fish is far from Walt Disneys movies. Its primitive and basic.

     

     The biology of a fish---  www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/biology_of_fish.php

I thought that was why bass hold up in schools to learn and know how to be a bass  ;D

If your water is still cold during the spring and its around spawn time,the fish will still try to move shallow just because the length of daylight getting longer affects their instinct to spawn.They may not stay long but they will go shallow and roam around.....its their nature. The length of daylight thing is more dependable than water temps although both affect the fish.

100% instinct.

I used to raise macaws.  We took them from the nest as soon as they were born and hand fed them.

It was amazing to see how their instincts kicked in even though they were not brought up by their parents or were around any other macaws.

Bass, and all wild animals, have their instincts, which are very strong.  That is what causes a "pet" wild animal to turn on their owners or others.  A wild animal can be tamed only so far and then their instincts kick in.

So do bass know?  Yes, they know.  They all know.

And as they said on that old radio program in the 40's...The Shadow Knows!

I do not understand why humans  try to portray fish like they actually have a reasoning and thought process as humans do. The real world for fish is far from Walt Disneys movies. Its primitive and basic.

It makes it easy to explain and understand if it is told in such a way. I know for a fact that I have caught fish shallow all the way till the water has frozen and in some lakes I have broken ice with my boat just to fish. Shallow meaning on the bank shallow. I have fished some lakes that one day they have ice across it the next day they are open and the next day frozen again and still caught fish shallow. So if the have a gland that tells them hey dummy it's winter migrate to deep water and wait till spring. Why are they there and also why do some bass spawn in fall in a regular lake? And also in hot water discharge lakes since "fish will still try to move shallow just because the length of daylight getting longer affects their instinct to spawn" why do those fish spawn in the winter in the shortest days of the year. The length of the day doesn't effect anything but the water temp.

We've all caught fish shallow in cold water,its no secret that they move back and forth throughout the day. In a warm discharge lake things are different as you say. I'm talking about regular lakes that have drastically changing water temps throughout all 4 seasons. (summer-high 80's,winter-high 30's)......the length of daylight has an effect on the fish...its a sign that seasons are changing. If its still 25 degrees during the day in March,the water isnt warming much,if at all,but the length of daylight is still getting longer.  

I thought that was why bass hold up in schools to learn and know how to be a bass ;D

Way 2 go Chris.  I always considedered you the most knowledgeable among us.

But this was a comment worthy of the mudster himself  

I'm pretty sure that no bass ever had an original thought in its life.

People are funny, they have trouble believing that any animal could be dumber than a human ;D

Roger

        www.insideline.net/1994/gustaveson-0708-94.html

Bass are not dumb: they easily have a brain that at least matches or is better than a rocks.

Our bass are wealthy and pull out their sleeping bags and pillows when it gets cold. Before rising they check their digital thermometers to decided the days adventures. Of course the more wealthy ones check the weather channel on their HDTV.

kb here    george   wish i had the guts to answer that one   kb

Hey George Welcome,

You know, I am going to rescind my statement about bass being primitive. I think they have to be smarter than me. They make a college educated, reasonable, sane man get out of a perfectly warm bed on a Saturday or Sunday morning on a 40 degree day with the wind blowing 35 mph and the snow flurries blowing sideways to fish for them when I could  be on the couch watching the old black and white westerns on channel 53 and eating fried potatos, sausage and eggs in my Sponge Bob boxers. I must not be very bright after all, and a 50 year old man wearing Sponge Bob boxers proves it I guess,LOL. ;D

I feel that in the winter bass can and will move up because the water temp is tolerable to the baitfish. When the baitfish move up even if it for a short span the bass follow. Baitfish are not as cold hardy as larger bass and are not as effected by the colder temps as a baitfish might be. When the water temp drops and the baitfish move farther out for warmer water the bass follow. In the spring I have found that when I first see any sign of baitfish in the shallows even if I only see one or two the bass have already moved up or will in a day or two. I think there is more of a correlation with the temperature of the water and what temperature the baitfish can stand then the length of the day. The longer the day the more the sun can heat up the water and algae can grow. Your putting to much emphasis on a glad where you should be looking at the temperature more closely and the relationship it has to baitfish activities and movement. Shad for example will die in cold or hot water which will not effect the bass as much. The bass can still function while the shad seek out more tolerable conditions. When the conditions turn south and the shad leave for better water temps the bass follow the food source. I have had a few years where we had a mild winter and the bass and baitfish never moved deep. As far as the intelligence of a bass they are dumb but because they learn through positive and negative reinforcement and instinct that is what makes them smart. They know how to avoid danger and can adapt to fishing pressure learn to avoid certain lures because they relate them to a bad response. Granted a dog can learn also from positive and negative reinforcement so is a dog considered smart? When your dealing with a fish that has strong instinct for survival who is also an accomplished predator they don't get big from latching onto anything that swims by your dealing with a well tuned fish. Large bass become large from being selective at what they put into their mouths. The object must look and act real for them to be suckered into mistaking it for live food. This is a learned response from eating millions of live baitfish and other live critters. The bass can distinguish between real and fake or more important they know the way a real baitfish should swim and act. If you can't make your bait look or act like it is alive the bass will pass it up because something is wrong and the object isn't acting like the millions of other baitfish the bass has eaten before. It is like the difference between a wild shiner and a domestic shiner. The wild shiner will haul butt to get away from a bass the domestic hangs around like business as usual because the domestic shiner has never grown up in a lake where they where chased all the time, they have no fear. Bass are smart from learning through positive and negative reinforcement. Now the spawn issue Bass have a temperature and water conditions that are ideal for the eggs to mature. If the criteria is not met because of poor water conditions, poor spawning areas, or temperature the bass will wait and have a late spawn and at times will pass up the spawn all together. In some lakes either because of poor conditions during the spring or maybe they are on a different cycle or something these bass spawn in the fall. I am not talking of large numbers of fish but enough to break out the bedfishing equipment. Physically spawning not just catching an oddball fish that drops a few eggs on the deck of the boat but visible beds and fish locked onto them. I have seen fish do this in several lakes and in several states so it isn't like my fish are glowing with 3 eyes or something. I have also seen bass fry in the fall so I know that the spawn in this time frame can be successful now if the survive the winter or not that might be a different story.

kb:  now there is a intelligent anwser  to question  thank you chris   kb  

"Here fishy, fishy, fishy!"  

"Here fishy, fishy, fishy!"  

"Come on boy, bite the hook, there ya go!"  

"Good boy."

:

;D

Sorry I had to.

How you all doing?

Alfred