4. Science, Learning, and the Role of Practical Experience in Fishing

The frontiers of fishing knowledge have moved from the experience-driven intuition of folks like my father in a plywood boat on the St. Lawrence River, with neither sonar nor GPS, to modern fishing boats equipped with space-age technology. Adaptive fishing is not a comparison of new and old ways, but a reminder that anglers still need to bring a level of intellectual proficiency into the game to excel at fishing. This neural root of fishing strategy survives in each of us. It is a biological gift, science-based, and essential to creating and attaining your fishing goals. Read More…

Fishing theory is the knowledge framework for building strategy and tactics required for fishing success. Scientific theories (or ideas) validated by research are simply descriptions of what something is and how it works. These explanations are used to create predictions that scientists (or anglers) can test in the field, Theories can also make sense of individual observations or scattered fishing facts by merging them in meaningful patterns.

Theories also build context, which serves to make sense of experiences from a broader perspective. For example, anglers combine knowledge from individual fishing experiences to create better ideas about how a fish species “fits” into its environment. A broader perspective on the fish’s world helps anglers understand seasonal changes, links to weather patterns and energetics, niche relationships, predation, and all of the other factors and events that could influence what an angler experiences on the water.

Learning from experience is what some scientists refer to as the human adaptation process. This process is essential to every stage of learning in fishing, from novice to expert, and is at the heart of adaptive fishing.