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[Tangles]

I just tied some jigs in UV hot pink marabou and was wondering whether UV colours are more attractive or visible to salmon in low light conditions? What's your experience with using UV vs non-UV colours, have you noticed any difference or it's all just a marketing gimmick? It would be interesting to read some research on that, I just read a great article on how visible are the different colours depending on depth and clarity but it didn't mention anything about UV.

[rootbeer]

I found this article interesting

http://www.fishwithgary.com/kokanee_university_part1.html

and this set of videos

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tpQTh_tnJ6c

[Tangles]

Great links! Just finished reading/watching them, thanks for sharing

[StillAqua]

Curious. Guess I don't keep up with all the latest lure gimmicks but what exactly are UV colours? Colours that reflect only UV light? I assume they aren't colours/sparkles they like to call "fluorescent" but are really just reflective.

Silver spoons reflect all light wavelengths including UV, wouldn't they have the same appearance?

[Fish or cut bait.]

They absorb UV light better and therefore CAN add to the visibility.
(That's the simplest non scientific way to explain it)

[StillAqua]

The science is where the confusion comes from. Seems most of the lure manufacturers on their websites are claiming their coatings reflect UV light which penetrates deeper than visible light and which fish can apparently see.

But then, to illustrate it, they show their lures glowing (usually green or blue) under a black light (UV-A light) claiming that's what the fish see. If that's true, that's not reflection of UV, that's absorbance of UV and glowing at a visible wavelength. So they are using phosphors, like your old Jimi Hendrix poster. Whether or not they also reflect UV that fish can see seems questionable.

[DanL]

Curious. Guess I don't keep up with all the latest lure gimmicks but what exactly are UV colours? Colours that reflect only UV light? I assume they aren't colours/sparkles they like to call "fluorescent" but are really just reflective.

I think UV paint is meant to reflect UV light, which fish can see. How a fish actually perceives UV light is anyone's guess, but they are certainly sensitive to it.

Silver spoons reflect all light wavelengths including UV, wouldn't they have the same appearance?

This is an interesting question that I've never given much thought. I had to look it up but apparently silver doesn't reflect all light equally, and it's reflectivity falls off dramatically at wavelengths < 400 nm which happen to be around where UV starts, so silver may not be all that great at reflecting UV. Silver does excel at reflecting light throughout the visible range, hence it's perceived 'flashiness' to us.

The science is where the confusion comes from. Seems most of the lure manufacturers on their websites are claiming their coatings reflect UV light which penetrates deeper than visible light and which fish can apparently see.

But then, to illustrate it, they show their lures glowing (usually green or blue) under a black light (UV-A light) claiming that's what the fish see. If that's true, that's not reflection of UV, that's absorbance of UV and glowing at a visible wavelength. So they are using phosphors, like your old Jimi Hendrix poster. Whether or not they also reflect UV that fish can see seems questionable.

You are right, that would be fluorescence, not reflection, but could have some utility if you used that lure at depths where the visible light has been filtered out but some UV still reaches, then it may appear to have some colour through fluorescence. Or perhaps the paint has properties of both UV reflection and fluorescence.

As for UV reflection, we obviously cant see it ourselves as our eyes don't have UV sensitivity but there are cameras out there that do, so one could, in theory, test whether a paint actually does reflect UV. google for 'UV photography' for some really interesting images.

[typhoon]

Commercial trollers make their living off of catch rates, and most swear by UV reflective flashers and spoons.
Their results are from trial and error, not based on marketing-speak so I'm inclined to believe it.

[Tangles]

U.V. light is below the visible spectrum (of lower wave frequency), which means it cannot be seen directly. All U.V. light is dissipated in very shallow fresh water holding kokanee, because the water, plankton and other particulates in the water absorb all of it. It is well documented that there will be no U.V. light in the fresh water column below just a few feet. I have tested lures labeled "U.V." Most work very well in waters holding kokanee, and in particular the UV squids should be a part of your tackle box. However, lures labeled "U.V." would be more accurately labeled as "fluorescent." These "U.V." lures come in visible colors. Since UV is not visible, the color you see is fluorescent. As with all fluorescent colors, stimulation by a black light will make the color jump out at you. But these lures are in fact only fluorescent. But that is why they are good. They still need some visible light at depth to be most effective. They do not glow.

This is an exerpt from the article posted by rootbeer

[typhoon]

When I talk about UV I am very specifically talking about UV reflective, and not fluorescent.
UV reflective lures work better than fluorescent in many instances, including stillwaters.

[Tangles]

So basically there's no practical means to find out whether certain paint is true UV or fluorescent? Fluorescent colors on the other hand are still very effective but could only be verified for fluorescence using my UV flashlight, correct? I'm starting to get confused between fluorescent, UV and glow-in-the-dark phosphorus based paints.
Also what would it be a good place to buy some UV, fluorescent or glow-in-dark paints, maybe a craft store? Michael's didn't have any "special" selection last time I checked it was just generic basic colors.

[mojo7]

Anything that is "glow in the dark" that humans can see is giving off light waves in the visible spectrum. It is normal visible light, no different than the light from your light bulb. UV is a light wave that humans cannot see so if a manufacturer says their product reflects UV you'll have to take their word for it unless there is a device that can measure UV light that you can test it with.

[Tangles]

By "glow in the dark" I mean phosphor based paints which actually need very small amount of natural light to start glowing. Funny enough if you shine a UV light to it for a few seconds it would glow in full darkness for a good couple of minutes.

[StillAqua]

So basically there's no practical means to find out whether certain paint is true UV or fluorescent? Fluorescent colors on the other hand are still very effective but could only be verified for fluorescence using my UV flashlight, correct? I'm starting to get confused between fluorescent, UV and glow-in-the-dark phosphorus based paints.
Also what would it be a good place to buy some UV, fluorescent or glow-in-dark paints, maybe a craft store? Michael's didn't have any "special" selection last time I checked it was just generic basic colors.

Yeah, the terms can get confusing and the manufacturers don't help by mixing up the terminology.

UV-reflective: like a mirror, it reflects any UV light that hits it. No UV light, no reflectance.

UV-fluorescent: like my Jimi Hendrix poster under black light, when UV light hits it, it absorbs the UV light and re-emits it (fluorescence) at a different wavelength, often in the visible wavelengths so we can see it. When there is no UV light shining on it, there is no fluorescence.

Glow in the dark: like my old Green Ghost game, the material absorbs light (not just UV) and over time, slowly re-emits it (phosphorescence) at the same or different wavelengths. If you take the light away, it still glows in the dark for a while.

I suspect most of the lures being sold as UV lures are actually UV-fluorescent as that article mentions. Interesting that polished aluminum has very high UV reflectance, much higher than nickel which most spoons seem to be made of. Maybe polished aluminum spoons would be more effective under low light conditions (turbid water, deep troll).

Pro-tec UV paints can apparently be bought from Cabelas on-line.

[Tangles]

I'll defintely check out Cabelas for those paints, thanks