THE SCIENCE OF FADS

An in-depth look at what makes these fish attractors so effective

- BRUCE POHLOT,

Tens of thousands of years ago, our ancestors took to the ocean in search of food. Since that time, we have become increasingly aware of the innate behavior of certain species of fish, and especially their attraction to floating objects. Ancient texts from the Roman Empire explain how bunches of floating reeds tied together could produce large schools of mahimahi within rowing distance of shore. The knowledge of how to fish around specific floating logs has been passed down for many generations in Pacific Island communities, and even the average weekend angler is aware a weed line or floating piece of trash can produce fish. With the knowledge that many offshore species share an affinity for floating objects, it didn't take long for people to start building their own fish aggregating devices, or FADs, in order to produce more productive fishing.