The " green pumpkin" color in soft plastics

[Sam]

Green pumpkin is a staple in Virginia waters.

 

No idea why the color is not productive in other areas.

 

This is why bass fishing is such a challenging sport and that we have 100's of colors and color combinations to select among.

 

It is enough to drive you crazy but the Bait Monkey will love you.

[Somd Fx4]

That stinkin bait monkey, Gets me every time.  I have mixed results with green pumpkin. I don't think I have landed a fish on straight green pumpkin. Almost always has some sort of flake in it. I switch between junebug, watermelon, black and green pumpkin. 

[greentrout]

 

[NHBull]

99 % of my novice guest use GP on a wacky or neco rig and get better numbers than I do.

With the exception of orange around spawn, BB,GP,June Bug and purple is all I carry

[CrankFate]

On 9/29/2018 at 4:42 PM, WRB said:

Invisible to bass? it's invisible to you!

Tom

So it seems, but from what I’ve seen and from what I’ve read, they have pretty poor eyesight compared to people. Their eyesight is not instantly and automatically infinitely adjustable, like ours. Picture crystal clear water, 2 to 7 feet deep with round rolling rocks all completely covered in green hair algae, so that everything is green. In those conditions, the green pumpkin is transparent without polarized lenses on. The bass definitely can’t see it. And they can’t see chartreuse. Try It, you’ll see that they’ll only take colors that they can see in these conditions and greens, blues and brownish greens will not produce.

[Russ E]

47 minutes ago, CrankFate said:

So it seems, but from what I’ve seen and from what I’ve read, they have pretty poor eyesight compared to people. Their eyesight is not instantly and automatically infinitely adjustable, like ours. Picture crystal clear water, 2 to 7 feet deep with round rolling rocks all completely covered in green hair algae, so that everything is green. In those conditions, the green pumpkin is transparent without polarized lenses on. The bass definitely can’t see it. And they can’t see chartreuse. Try It, you’ll see that they’ll only take colors that they can see in these conditions and greens, blues and brownish greens will not produce.

If this were true, bass would starve to death. Most things a bass eat are a neutral color. 

crayfish and bait fish don't turn a bright color, so bass can find them easier.

I catch bass on green pumpkin baits  in clear, green, and murky water. they can find it just fine.

the conditions you describe are ideal for using a green pumpkin bait.

 

[Looking for the big one]

48 minutes ago, CrankFate said:

So it seems, but from what I’ve seen and from what I’ve read, they have pretty poor eyesight compared to people. Their eyesight is not instantly and automatically infinitely adjustable, like ours. Picture crystal clear water, 2 to 7 feet deep with round rolling rocks all completely covered in green hair algae, so that everything is green. In those conditions, the green pumpkin is transparent without polarized lenses on. The bass definitely can’t see it. And they can’t see chartreuse. Try It, you’ll see that they’ll only take colors that they can see in these conditions and greens, blues and brownish greens will not produce.

I think that your experience has conditioned you to think this, but I don't truly think that the bass cannot see the bait. I've caught bass at night on a new moon where I couldn't see me hand in front of my face. Bass can detect lures without using sight. I think it's possible that the bass didn't want to commit to your GP worm, possibly because they've been conditioned to that color scheme and something like a white or pink is bright and obtrusive and they react to it. 

 

GP is my personal favorite color across many different situations, but I experiment and find that often times color isn't as important as the presentation itself.

[Bankbeater]

The smaller crawfish in my home waters are close to a green pumpkin color.  I think that's why I have good luck with that color in certain ponds.

[Arlo Smithereen]

On 9/29/2018 at 3:34 PM, CrankFate said:

It’s the worst color. You’re better off with hot pink.  I know other people swear by it, but in water with a lot of light green algae or a green tint, it is invisible to bass. I have seen them hear it hit the water turn to the splash and not be able to see it right in front of their eyes.  Once their eyes are all greened out greens and yellows become invisible to them. Go with something super visible and fluorescent. Add silver or gold and maybe a bead to make some noise. Just what I have learned from watching the blind morons not be able to see it.

once their eyes are all 'greened out'?? ?

[tholmes]

Green Pumpkin, while not my most productive color, is still one that I carry and use. It ranks behind tequila sunrise/red shad, black and June bug, but is still in the arsenal. I seem to have better results with jigs in GP than soft plastics, especially early in the season. I catch enough bass on GP that it keeps its place in my tackle box.

 

Tom

[NYWayfarer]

Green Pumpkin is my go to color.

 

I feel your pain though as most people on these forums swear by watermelon colored baits and I have not been able to get them to work for me.

[Chris186]

I will only buy something in green pumpkin when watermelonseed or watermelon/red flake isn't available. Other than that I like black and blue and big texan.

 

[WRB]

It's a big mistake thinking a fishes eye sight is anything like a humans. Bass have excellent eye sight and other senses to help find prey under water that is trying to hide from them. Predators like bass eat live prey that has also evolved in the same eccosystems and have developed camouflaged coloration to blend into cover and structure to help them survive. 

What I have learned from over 60 years of bass fishing is matching the forage coloration  is very important but is only 1 factor. Prey that behaves injured and looks like the prey the bass care targeting at that is a food source. 

If you are using a green pumpkin color lure in lakes where bass are targeting Threadfin Shad for example it doesn't look a Shad unless it has a contrasting pearl white belly. Using green pumpkin is lakes with bluegill adding charteuse high lights adds contrast to help stand the lure out and look natural increases strike ratio. 

It's to the angler to present the lure so it behaves injured and stands out from prey the bass hunting.

Tom

 

[Russ E]

sometimes I think color is over rated.

 according to studies, bass don't see the blue spectrum well.

 

when I was an engineer, I was programming operator interfaces screens for robotic welding lines.

we often used a yellow or green background with  blue, and red alarm banners.

one of our machine operators was partially color blind. He could not see the blue spectrum.

He could not tell much difference from the colors blue, purple, and green.

a blue banner would blend into the green background.

interestingly, if the blue banner was flashing on and off, he could distinguish it from the green background.

 

this got me thinking about bass fishing (as nearly everything in life does).

Maybe Bass  home in on movement, more than color.

 

[BASSnRacks]

hands down my most productive color!

[HeyCoach]

Last summer I caught dozens on a weightless rigged GP/GW laminate Senko every time I went out. I had to buy several packs from Walmart as the summer progressed. 

 

Oxblood red finesse worms also worked very well for me last year.

[Mobasser]

38 minutes ago, WRB said:

It's a big mistake thinking a fishes eye sight is anything like a humans. Bass have excellent eye sight and other senses to help find prey under water that is trying to hide from them. Predators like bass eat live prey that has also evolved in the same eccosystems and have developed camouflaged coloration to blend into cover and structure to help them survive. 

What I have learned from over 60 years of bass fishing is matching the forage coloration  is very important but is only 1 factor. Prey that behaves injured and looks like the prey the bass care targeting at that is a food source. 

If you are using a green pumpkin color lure in lakes where bass are targeting Threadfin Shad for example it doesn't look a Shad unless it has a contrasting pearl white belly. Using green pumpkin is lakes with bluegill adding charteuse high lights adds contrast to help stand the lure out and look natural increases strike ratio. 

It's to the angler to present the lure so it behaves injured and stands out from prey the bass hunting.

Tom

 

Tom, green pumpkin hasn't worked for me, but I'm not saying it's no good. As you said, bass are a predator, and they feed on the easiest thing they can. Whatever color, and action along with depth and speed can trigger a strike. I do believe color is important, along with all the other factors. Always pays to carry a few shades of plastics, from light to darker.So many factors in drawing strikes, especially from larger bass, and it all happens in seconds.

[WRB]

Getting into any color regarding fishing of various types opens up a can of worms.

I have trout fished with flys, lures and bait and trout anglers are anal about matching the hatch believing trout have microscopic vision. Off shore tuna and marlin anglers have their beliefs, both predators have big eyes and hunt prey in gin clear water. The color of live bait darker verses lighter greens makes a big difference with both tuna and Marlin, yet some angers believe these fish are color blind.

Green pumpkin reminds me of the 70's era motor oil and the 80's era green Winnie, every soft plastic maker had a different color, no standard shade. Color shades are nearly impossible to define. Bill Murphy in his book In Pursuit of Giant Bass discusses the color white. Bill was a dental technician that needed to match teeth under various lighting conditions so the crown or replacement tooth looked the same as the other teeth.

What Bill references is the same shade of white changes under different light source and the same shade of white paint from different suppliers looks different under light source.

What is important to this topic is bass react differently to 1 supplier of white verses another when painted onto the same lure, the bass apparently can see the difference and we can't.

This is why I say the color topic is a complex topic and we don't know how bass brain interprets the color spectrum. 

Tom

[Jaderose]

18 hours ago, CrankFate said:

So it seems, but from what I’ve seen and from what I’ve read, they have pretty poor eyesight compared to people. Their eyesight is not instantly and automatically infinitely adjustable, like ours. Picture crystal clear water, 2 to 7 feet deep with round rolling rocks all completely covered in green hair algae, so that everything is green. In those conditions, the green pumpkin is transparent without polarized lenses on. The bass definitely can’t see it. And they can’t see chartreuse. Try It, you’ll see that they’ll only take colors that they can see in these conditions and greens, blues and brownish greens will not produce.

There is simply nothing about this paragraph that is true.  You say "try it"...I and a whole bunch of others on here do....every single time we go fishing.  This isn't a personal attack on you, I'm just afraid you are very misguided.

 

[Choporoz]

4 hours ago, BASSnRacks said:

hands down my most productive color!

Mine too.  However....GP (with flake variants) is the color that I throw more than twice as often as any other....so, there's that

[Fishingmickey]

A 10" green pumpkin Berkley power worm bit down to 8" texas rigged on a Gamakatsu 5/0 round bend hook with a 1/4 oz slip sinker is money.

FM

[BASSnRacks]

36 minutes ago, Choporoz said:

Mine too.  However....GP (with flake variants) is the color that I throw more than twice as often as any other....so, there's that

I throw the same! I've had much success on basic Gp but do very well with black,red, blue. and various metal flakes mixed in.

[Mobasser]

Like I said in my original thread, GP hasn't worked that well for me. It's works very good for others. I have caught bass on GP red flake and a couple of other variants.If it's working good for you, by all means keep using it.Personally, I've done better at other colors, so I'll stay with them. Also, have others have said, bass are predators who use sight, sound, and vibration to catch prey. They can see much better than than we think. That's why almost any color could possibly work on any given day. We develop our faves by experience, and having confidence in what's worked for us.As many have said, color in bass lures is a complex subject, and warrants discussion.I respect everyone's choice- but green pumpkin is not mine

[WRB]

This a better cabin fever topic IMO.

Does anyone remember the hot color before green pumpkin?

Not long ago and just before green pumpkin watermelon w/red flake was considered the hot color. Before watermelon /red flake June bug and red Shad or tequila sunrise ruled the rost for soft plastics. The color that hasn't faded over the past 10 years is black w/blue and still right near or is on top of the popularity charts.

My personal top bass catching soft plastic color is purple and not popular nation wide but very popular out west where I fish.

The bottom line is you can't catch bass on something you don't use and you will never know if it's the basses preferred choice is unless you fish with it.

Tom

[fishwizzard]

25 minutes ago, WRB said:

 

My personal top bass catching soft plastic color is purple and not popular nation wide but very popular out west where I fish.

The only purple plastic I use is a 6' Robo in MM3, but I am starting to think it is the only DS plastic I really need to carry.  I'm sure it's confirmation bias at this point, but I swear it catches them at least 3:1 vs every other color I have tried.