By Tim Romano

I ran into Rick Dickson of Freehand Fly Fishing at the industry trade show last year. At that time, his company was hedging their bets that magnets could up your odds of catching fish. The then anecdotal evidence convinced them to introduce a line of products that have direct contact of magnets to hooks and flies.

Well, it seems now that they've been proven correct. A piece in The Seattle Times — adapted from ScienceNOW.com — describes how "scientists have isolated magnetic cells in rainbow trout." While the piece has a few typos and the author actually seems to confuse a rainbow trout with a steelhead, the science behind it is pretty intriguing.

From this story on The Seattle Times:
"We think this will really be a game changer," says Michael Winklhofer, an earth scientist at Ludwig Maximilians University Munich in Germany who led the new study. "To study magnetic sensory cells, you have to be able to get hold of them first, and that's what we've finally developed a way to do."

In each isolated cell, the magnetite particles were next to the cell membranes, the scientists report online Monday in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. And surprisingly, the magnetism in each cell was tens to hundreds of times stronger than researchers had hypothesized, says Winklhofer. This suggests that the fish may be able to detect not only the direction of North based on magnetism, but small differences in magnetic field strength that can give them more detailed information about their precise latitude and longitude.

Interesting stuff for sure. While I'm not 100 percent sure this would help increase your chances of catching fish, many people claim that using magnets does increase your odds. Here's my question to you: If using magnetically-charged hooks and other fishing accessories can greatly up your odds of landing fish, would you use it? Or is it like hiding a tube of scent in your pocket and applying it when your fishing buddies aren't looking?

Comments (10)

from Sayfu wrote 48 weeks 2 days ago

I use to use a magnet to catch fish with. I'd tie it on the end of my line, throw it out...well that was just for steelhead.

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from buckhunter wrote 48 weeks 1 day ago

I don't think I would go out of my way to buy magnetized hooks. Besides, if it really did turn out to be a great advantage, it would soon be outlawed on fly only waters.

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from Sayfu wrote 48 weeks 1 day ago

Buckhunter...Why now?..You never let goin illegal stop you before.

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from fflutterffly wrote 48 weeks 1 day ago

This is getting to close to spin fishing for me. I'll just stick to the entomology for my catching or the furry little animals that flop into the water. Yummy! Magnets... just remember 'your future's in plastic.'

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from Sayfu wrote 48 weeks 1 day ago

flutterfly...undoubtably you don't know all of your aquatic insects. Never came across the ones with a small spinner blade attached between their eyes?

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from firetiger wrote 47 weeks 4 days ago

I must have missed where the author "mistakes a rainbow trout for a steelhead".... A rainbow trout IS a steelhead, same species, O.mykiss

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from Sayfu wrote 47 weeks 4 days ago

what flew over your head firetiger, is..you can't catch a rainbow using a magnet, but steelhead clamp right on to a magnet casted out.

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from Michael Yonts wrote 47 weeks 21 hours ago

I'm there with Firetiger, rainbow's and steelhead are the same species. While the species 'Oncorhynchus mykiss' was originally divided into two separate species from the late 18th century (Salmo gairdneri), in 1992 the two species were reassigned as a single species based on the definition of a species. While there are morphological differences between 'steelhead' and 'rainbow' trout, those morphological differences are a product of the environment.

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from Sayfu wrote 46 weeks 6 days ago

Not by the fed. govts definition. They changed the status of steelhead to be included in the salmon ID...and done to allow the Indians to net steelhead, and market them as salmon.

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from Michael Yonts wrote 46 weeks 5 days ago

Yeah, well, a species is still a species, regardless of what politicians say...

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from fflutterffly wrote 48 weeks 1 day ago

This is getting to close to spin fishing for me. I'll just stick to the entomology for my catching or the furry little animals that flop into the water. Yummy! Magnets... just remember 'your future's in plastic.'

+2 Good Comment? Yes | No | Report

from firetiger wrote 47 weeks 4 days ago

I must have missed where the author "mistakes a rainbow trout for a steelhead".... A rainbow trout IS a steelhead, same species, O.mykiss

+2 Good Comment? Yes | No | Report

from Sayfu wrote 48 weeks 2 days ago

I use to use a magnet to catch fish with. I'd tie it on the end of my line, throw it out...well that was just for steelhead.

+1 Good Comment? Yes | No | Report

from buckhunter wrote 48 weeks 1 day ago

I don't think I would go out of my way to buy magnetized hooks. Besides, if it really did turn out to be a great advantage, it would soon be outlawed on fly only waters.

+1 Good Comment? Yes | No | Report

from Sayfu wrote 48 weeks 1 day ago

Buckhunter...Why now?..You never let goin illegal stop you before.

0 Good Comment? Yes | No | Report

from Sayfu wrote 48 weeks 1 day ago

flutterfly...undoubtably you don't know all of your aquatic insects. Never came across the ones with a small spinner blade attached between their eyes?

0 Good Comment? Yes | No | Report

from Sayfu wrote 47 weeks 4 days ago

what flew over your head firetiger, is..you can't catch a rainbow using a magnet, but steelhead clamp right on to a magnet casted out.

0 Good Comment? Yes | No | Report

from Michael Yonts wrote 47 weeks 21 hours ago

I'm there with Firetiger, rainbow's and steelhead are the same species. While the species 'Oncorhynchus mykiss' was originally divided into two separate species from the late 18th century (Salmo gairdneri), in 1992 the two species were reassigned as a single species based on the definition of a species. While there are morphological differences between 'steelhead' and 'rainbow' trout, those morphological differences are a product of the environment.

0 Good Comment? Yes | No | Report

from Sayfu wrote 46 weeks 6 days ago

Not by the fed. govts definition. They changed the status of steelhead to be included in the salmon ID...and done to allow the Indians to net steelhead, and market them as salmon.

0 Good Comment? Yes | No | Report

from Michael Yonts wrote 46 weeks 5 days ago

Yeah, well, a species is still a species, regardless of what politicians say...

0 Good Comment? Yes | No | Report

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All submitted comments are subject to the rules set forth in our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.