at some point,
it ceases to be a sport.
Ultraviolet lure may catch fish's eye By Nicholas K. Geranios, Associated Press Writer ¦ February 5, 2006 SPOKANE, Wash. -- In the ancient struggle between man and fish, man
has a new weapon. Forget fancy lures, depth charges or precision
casting guns. The new weapon requires vision -- ultraviolet vision. Called Fool-a-Fish, it comes in a bottle that sprays titanium dioxide
on fishing lures and bait. The chemical lights up the watery depths
like a disco ball, luring fish from half a mile away. Fool-a-Fish is the brainchild of a Spokane physician named Milan
Jeckle -- that's Dr. Jeckle to you -- who combined his love of
chemistry and the outdoors into a new business. Fool-A-Fish is earning
a growing reputation as anglers from Alaska to Florida enjoy success
with the product. "You catch three or four times more fish, and the biggest fish,"
Jeckle contended. Researchers have discovered that while humans see in three colors --
red, yellow-green and blue -- fish and birds see a fourth color in the
ultraviolet range, which shows up as a white glow, Jeckle said. This
color is invisible to humans. Working with David Cleary, a chemistry professor at Spokane's Gonzaga
University, Jeckle came up with the formula combining titanium
dioxide, which is used in sunscreens, and several other chemicals. The
whitish liquid dries quickly, and will stay on a lure for some two
hours, he said. It is nontoxic, odorless and washes off with soap and
water. But underwater it shines like a beacon to fish. In November of 2004, Jeckle and two friends went to Moses Lake, in
central Washington, to try it out. "I put it on my bait and caught a 6-pound walleye," Jeckle said. Later
he took it to Alaska and caught several 100-pound halibut. Jeckle said many of the spray products currently used to lure fish are
scent-based, because fish are known to search for food by smell. "This is based entirely on vision," Jeckle said. "This is a new way to
fish." "It's not just blood that attracts sharks," he added. "They can see a
swimmer half a mile away." Jeckle makes up batches of Fool-A-Fish in his kitchen. The spray is
sold in some outdoor stores in the region, and it can be ordered on
Jeckle's Web site. It is also getting written up in fishing magazines.
Northwest Angler said the formula "makes it super easy for fish to see
lures or baits from great distances." Instructors at Salmon University in Tacoma, a guide service and
fishing school, also report success with the product. John Keizer, one
of its chief instructors, said he found that treated herring caught
three fish for every one caught on untreated herring. Jeckle has also adapted his formula to produce Fool-A-Bird, which
works on a reverse principle. Birds use ultraviolet vision to avoid
humans, so Jeckle created a formula that when sprayed on a hunter's
clothes, body and gun will absorb ultraviolet rays. "You spray it on yourself and they treat you like a tree trunk or a
dead stump," Jeckle said. "They ignore you." Jeckle grew up in Green Bay, Wis., where he began fishing for perch as
a boy. He practiced for three decades as a family physician in
Spokane, and went into semiretirement five years ago. That's what gave
him the time to develop his products, he said. Jeckle cautioned that Fool-A-Fish is not foolproof. "It's not magic," Jeckle said. Some days nothing will make fish bite,
and other days they will bite at anything, he said. "This is for when it's in-between," he said. |
