Can fish recognize a speargun?

    A long while back a friend commented to me about the well known fact that the fish in Cuba are very weary/Wiley. The common phrase used to denote this is "Los pescados saben leer y escribir" Translation "The fish know how to read and write". But he used a different funny phrase, something to the effect that when the fish see the spearfisher they can tell what model the speargun is and its range :) This of course is an exaggeration but touches on an interesting question, do fish recognize a speargun? And if they do is it due to previous experiences of being shot, being around other fish that got shot, or is it an instinctive weariness of an object being pointed at them?


    I was briefly talking about this with a friend yesterday and he said that it's just a matter of the attitude the diver is projecting, and he has a point. Focusing on a fish and starting to aim with a speargun changes the demeanor of a diver in a significant way. However, I thought focusing on a fish with a camera the diver's body language is similar yet the fish don't get spooked. This conversation took place after my experience filming the video below. Watch near the end of the vid there's a 3-4lb mutton which I got within shooting range of. After that dive I exchanged the camera for a speargun and made another dive. As soon as that mutton saw me it took off. On that spot I felt there was a lot of hunting pressure, the fish were very skittish.


    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0WAObOhWG4g


    Another experience yesterday that's in favor of the fish recognizing a speargun were the jewfish. When I dove with the gun they would spook every time and make that boo-boom sound. When I dove with the camera I wanted them to do it so I could capture the sound. But try as I might they wouldn't spook, even if I made sudden motions with my free arm. You can see the camera shake when I tried this. You can also see that I got close enough to almost touch them.


    My conclusion is that the sight of a speargun prompts some fish into taking evasive action, and that they do so partially due to instinct but more definitely when they've had a few bad experiences.

    I kinda agree,except with sheepshead.here in california they are the slowest upstairs,if you miss they"ll come around and see what the wssp was.

    i think how you hold the gun makes a big impact on how the fish perceives you.. i usually swim with my hand around the middle of the barrel and keep the gun tucked flush with my body, until its time to shoot,, and even then try to be smooth and natural about pulling the gun into position,,, it seems as though somthing about having the gun extended and aimed outward spooks the fish... but besides that generality,, mackeral know when a gun is unloaded,, and take that time to circle and taunt you while loading and dissapear as soon as your ready.

    Scupper Pro Gives You Wings!

    Wow, this one is a hard one, so many factors that can make a fish wary, location, genetics, evolution, overfish and so many more things, I think depending how the fish is on the food chain makes them more scary, like take the goliath, size makes them top of the chain, regulations gave them back the place, cudas the same, top of the chain, fearless in openwater or shallow water and intelligent they hear a click and they are your partners, others like macks that are attracted to sound,you shoot your gun, shaftless and you have the biggest mack swiming around you,but muttons on the other hand open water hunters makes them really wary, soft flesh they tear easly so they have scar to remember what a shaft can do, other fish evolution have teach them what is a gun and what they do to them like the big Cuberas, shit sometimes I think they know the brand, size and reach of gun and they mess with our minds keepind the distance all time we are in the water, so all those things have to be consider at the time of getting close to fish as predators like body movement, lens color so they dont see owr eyes, tucking the gun close to owr bodies, Plan A, Plan B......Plan Z, wow this is getting tough, need something less challenging:D.

    Pucho
    Aguadilla, Puerto Rico

    haha steve is right on about those macks...


    I think the posture is everything..animals are much more attuned to our nonverbal communication so they can tell what our orientation is...I remember the cuba 1967 video of the World Championships and the Aussie guy is pretending to shoot on the scout dives...he is pointing an outstretched arm and aiming but the fish don't bolt, like they know he is unarmed...yet to my eyes he is doing the same hunting he would be with a gun...this goes to your camera observation Dan, I just feel like there is more to our posture that alerts them or doesnt

    i like to spear fish

    Have you guys seen fish, usually smaller reef fish, that will swim within gun range in front of you, but turn their bodies so that the top of their back is pointed at you thus providing a very small target. They will swim normally and do this as soon as you start to aim the gun.

    Two dives, on the same wreck, just 2 weeks apart last fall. The first time, there were large red snapper about, but they remained at the edge of my visibility, and often circled around and came up behind me. As soon as I turned and made eye contact, they bolted. Two weeks later, with red snapper season closed, I was literally poking these same fish in the side to get them to move out of my way for a shot on a grouper.


    I doubt that they knew the season was closed. I can only conclude, like everyone else, that I was giving off some subtle clues that caused the red snapper to interpret me as "not a threat".


    It reminds me of the old stories of a horse (or dog, or whatever) that supposedly could do simple arithemetic. It couldn't. It was just picking up on extremely subtle signals that the owner didn't even know he was giving.

    Quote from Tin Man

    Two dives, on the same wreck, just 2 weeks apart last fall. The first time, there were large red snapper about, but they remained at the edge of my visibility, and often circled around and came up behind me. As soon as I turned and made eye contact, they bolted. Two weeks later, with red snapper season closed, I was literally poking these same fish in the side to get them to move out of my way for a shot on a grouper.


    I doubt that they knew the season was closed. I can only conclude, like everyone else, that I was giving off some subtle clues that caused the red snapper to interpret me as "not a threat".


    It reminds me of the old stories of a horse (or dog, or whatever) that supposedly could do simple arithemetic. It couldn't. It was just picking up on extremely subtle signals that the owner didn't even know he was giving.


    :plusone:

    Tough to say. These spots are heavily fished H&L. We rarely see other divers, but the location is obviously not a secret.


    Unfortunately, this rather substantial pile of rubble seems to have disappeared over the summer.

    Quote

    When I dove with the gun they would spook every time and make that boo-boom sound. When I dove with the camera I wanted them to do it so I could capture the sound. But try as I might they wouldn't spook, even if I made sudden motions with my free arm.


    Dan I was under the impression that the sound they made came from there jaw. A warning of sorts to the wiser to back off.



    Quote

    Two dives, on the same wreck, just 2 weeks apart last fall. The first time, there were large red snapper about, but they remained at the edge of my visibility, and often circled around and came up behind me. As soon as I turned and made eye contact, they bolted. Two weeks later, with red snapper season closed, I was literally poking these same fish in the side to get them to move out of my way for a shot on a grouper.

    Jeff I bet it has something to do with more of an energy than anything else!!!


    Something like our engery feild or electrical impulses

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