Re: Do bass become conditioned to scent?

[Big_Bass_Rich]

That is an awesome question.. I never thought of that! I hope someone has the answer... lol

[squid]

I wouldn't think so, since that is one of their means of finding food, is scent.  But the noise they do get conditioned to.   Just like men...lol....we hear what we want to hear... ;D :

[bassin4life]

Bass adapt to all scent they have sensors between their head and nose which triggers a fish to eat or take off incase of preditors...there is deff more to it but thats just what i've read.

[John Cullum]

Lets hope not. If the bass stop eating stuff that smells like shad,baitfish and craw they'll all starve to death. Not much to eat if they don't eat shad,baitfish and crawfish.

[slapnuts]

I believe they do because I was fishin with a scent on my baits and after a while they stop bitin on bait with that scent.

[Chris]

I find that if you fish an area for a while and the fish stop biting then the area might be saturated with scent and you might want to change flavors to make your lure more distinctive smelling. Some fish prefer one scent over another at times and a change might trigger fish that other wise would not hit. Like if the bass where feeding on crawfish and then they look up to see a shad they might change feeding moods. Or if they where hanging next to cover after eating a shad and where inactive then all of a sudden the get a whiff of a crawfish they might feed again.

[Guest avid]

I think that bass can get conditioned to anything if they see, or hear, or smell it enough.   It's kinda like turkey hunting.  All these guys are out in the woods pre season with their turkey calls.  The turkeys hear em, come in then see some yahoo all excited that he "found" a turkey.  Well you may have found him, but you also educated him.

[Matt Fly]

Yes and no.  Some times we catch bass that are feeding and sometime we get reaction strikes.  Depends on the mentallity of the bass at that time.  When you catch numbers on one bait in the same area, you need to change style or presentation.  A 4 in grub in watermelon was the ticket, throw a  different looking worm in the same color to trigger the bite again.  Like catching crappie all day in the same hole.  Light penatration has change and so did the color of choice.  Early was a watermelon red, later is water melon candy.  Fish haven't moved, conditions changes by shade moving, sun moved over head and so on.  Scents can be changed also by using other brands or a totally different scent all together.

[Muddpuppy]

I would think that if a bass had been caught once before useing a specific scent then it would be more reluctant about takeing a bait that smelled that way again. As many fish that are caught and released and as many lures are sold of the same types and locations the odds are high that a good percentage of these fish have been caught off the same thing before in some places, but then I have also had fish turn right around and hit the same bait.

I fish with a friend that is completely adement that he catches fewer fish when they use garlic, and tries his best not to buy any that do. He catches alot of fish normally on unscented or mildly scented baits.  I on the other hand I love to experiment and trying different scents being one of things I have played around with.  Although I have yet to find something to completely show him up with and prove him wrong,  I also have never had fish to just stop biteing because I applied one (at least as long as he was still catching fish)