butterfly style jigs for cod

[shoefish]

For cod I would recommend either the 168 or 224 flat side squid glow (one side is chrome and the other glow)- it has outproduced all other jigs/colors for us over the past few years (it works well for tuna as a bonus). For haddock, the 160g mackerel color in regular butterfly (not the flatside) likewise seems to produce the best for us.

It won't be long now!

[tunatamer73]

The problem with your scale is this. They use human eyes for a reference. Fish have a completely different rod to cone structure. Some also see in what is called flash vision think strobe light effect. Also each genus family has evolved to excel in the environment they inhabit. look at the pupil size on a codfish or haddock notice the color of that pupil. Look at a bluefish eye or a striper eye different aren't they?

The human eye was not used as a reference or to measure this. There are very sensitive instruments call spectrophotometers which use diffraction gratings and photomultiplyers to analyse each individual wavelength of light. These instruments are capable of detecting wavelengths the human eye can not see. The human eye is capable of seeing the wavelengths between 390nanometers and 750nm. A spectrophotometer using a photomultiplyer as a detector can detect from 200nm to about 900nm. Other detectors such as leadsulfide can detect further into the infrared up to about 3000nm.

The water column is acting as a filter and absorbing wavelengths completely at cetain depths, red is the first to go. These wavlengths just do not exist at these depths. In order for a fish to see these colors they need to be reflected off of an object and since these wavelengths are non existant they can not be reflected therefore can not be detected by the fish's eye. The reason a cod or haddock have a large pupil is to let more light in to be focused on the rods and cones since there isn't much light down there to begin with. The same with a swordfish and other deep water fishes.

The best colors for deep jigging are the blues and greens. Chrome is good also as it reflects the blue and green light at these depths. Even better is to have some flouorescence paints which glow after they have been "charged" with the light at the surface. Butterfly jigs are excelent for cod. Using the assist style hook you will find you are not snagging as many in the belly like you do with the big trebles on the norwegian.

[AndyP]

The human eye was not used as a reference or to measure this. There are very sensitive instruments call spectrophotometers which use diffraction gratings and photomultiplyers to analyse each individual wavelength of light. These instruments are capable of detecting wavelengths the human eye can not see. The human eye is capable of seeing the wavelengths between 390nanometers and 750nm. A spectrophotometer using a photomultiplyer as a detector can detect from 200nm to about 900nm. Other detectors such as leadsulfide can detect further into the infrared up to about 3000nm.

The water column is acting as a filter and absorbing wavelengths completely at cetain depths, red is the first to go. These wavlengths just do not exist at these depths. In order for a fish to see these colors they need to be reflected off of an object and since these wavelengths are non existant they can not be reflected therefore can not be detected by the fish's eye. The reason a cod or haddock have a large pupil is to let more light in to be focused on the rods and cones since there isn't much light down there to begin with. The same with a swordfish and other deep water fishes.

The best colors for deep jigging are the blues and greens. Chrome is good also as it reflects the blue and green light at these depths. Even better is to have some flouorescence paints which glow after they have been "charged" with the light at the surface. Butterfly jigs are excelent for cod. Using the assist style hook you will find you are not snagging as many in the belly like you do with the big trebles on the norwegian.

Far out. Nice to know that the reason that silver and fluorescent have worked, although for me it has been fluorescent yellow. Definitely agree with the single assist hook. I believe that just about any jig will work if the current and tide are right.

[Col. Kurtz]

TT73,

You are definitely an engineer and proud of it! Good stuff and thanks for taking the time to write it up...

The human eye was not used as a reference or to measure this. There are very sensitive instruments call spectrophotometers which use diffraction gratings and photomultiplyers to analyse each individual wavelength of light. These instruments are capable of detecting wavelengths the human eye can not see. The human eye is capable of seeing the wavelengths between 390nanometers and 750nm. A spectrophotometer using a photomultiplyer as a detector can detect from 200nm to about 900nm. Other detectors such as leadsulfide can detect further into the infrared up to about 3000nm.

The water column is acting as a filter and absorbing wavelengths completely at cetain depths, red is the first to go. These wavlengths just do not exist at these depths. In order for a fish to see these colors they need to be reflected off of an object and since these wavelengths are non existant they can not be reflected therefore can not be detected by the fish's eye. The reason a cod or haddock have a large pupil is to let more light in to be focused on the rods and cones since there isn't much light down there to begin with. The same with a swordfish and other deep water fishes.

The best colors for deep jigging are the blues and greens. Chrome is good also as it reflects the blue and green light at these depths. Even better is to have some flouorescence paints which glow after they have been "charged" with the light at the surface. Butterfly jigs are excelent for cod. Using the assist style hook you will find you are not snagging as many in the belly like you do with the big trebles on the norwegian.

[scratchinbottom]

Thanks for sharing tuna! Very interesting stuff.