Friday, July 30, 2010

Northern Pike

Scientific Name: Esox lucius

Common Names: Northern Pike, Pike, Jackfish, Snake, Water Wolf (folk name)

General Info

In our area, the Northern Pike is a top predator with a large mouth and sharp teeth. It hunts ambush style waiting in weed beds for prey and then attacking fiercely. In fact, Knee Lake and our daily fly-out lakes and rivers offer non-stop action for these remarkable fish. Generally speaking, the Pike are some of the largest freshwater fish.

Description

Pike have a long, slender, laterally compressed body and a long, broad, flattened snout. Pike grow to a relatively large size: lengths of 150 cm and weight of 25 kg are not unheard of. There are reports of far larger Pike, but these have not been properly documented and belong in the realm of legend. The Northern Pike is an ambush predator and thus requires a streamlined snake-line body to move fast.

Evoluntinary wise, the Pike is an ancient fish compared with the Walleye. You can determine this by the position of the pelvic fins. On a Pike, the pelvic fins are down on the belly (similar to Salmons such as the Brook Trout). Through evolution, recent fish have incorporated pelvic fins right under the pectoral fins at the gills.

Sport Fishing

Pike are abundant, fun to catch, and can get very large. We have many master angler fish each year at North Star Resort. Fishing for Pike is very exciting with their explosive hits and aerial acrobatics. The Pike are some of the biggest freshwater fish and offers a fierce fight. It is for this reason that our tackle fishing is world-renowned.

Whilst a worthy adversary for any rod and line fisherman, Pike are often caught and released by fishermen since its flesh is bone-filled. However, the larger fish can be filleted, and Pike have had a long and distinguished history in cuisine and are popular in Germany, with historical references to its cooking going back as far as the Romans. Pike have very white, mild flesh, and are considered one of the best tasting freshwater fish. When eating Pike, be sure to chew carefully, as their 'y-bones' are not always easily visible.

Pike are hard fighting fish, so a strong line--such as braided dacron, but strong nylon monofilament is sufficient--is required, as is a length of wire between the bait and the line (a leader), since a Pike's sharp teeth can readily sever ordinary fishing line. A strong, stiff rod is also the typical choice of rod for the Pike angler, off which there are many versions and makes on the market. Generally, a strong spinning or baitcasting reel is used.

Because Pike are popular with anglers, fishing for Pike is regulated by most natural resource agencies such as Manitoba Natural Resources. Management may include the use of quotas and length limits to ensure that populations are not over-exploited. At North Star Resort, we adhere strictly to conservation regulations and advocate catch and release fishing to ensure big fish for generations to come.

Reproduction

The Northern Pike is a Spring spawner. The spawn occurs as soon as the ice is off the lake which is usually early to mid-May when water temperature reaches 40-52F (4.4-11.1C). Northerns spawn in heavily vegetated, shallow bays, often in no more than 7"/17.5cm of water. Spawning usually occurs during the day when eggs are scattered over and attach randomly to vegetation. During the spawn, males are not territorial and do not build nests.

Habitat

The Northern Pike is primarily a freshwater fish with a circumpolar distribution in the Northern Hemisphere. The Northern Pike is a cool-water species and its habitat is usually warm, slow, heavily vegetated rivers or the weedy bays of lakes.

Feeding Habits

The Pike generally hides in wait for prey, holding perfectly still for long periods, and is then capable of remarkable acceleration, sometimes propelling it a meter into the air (though it rarely leaves the surface). It catches its prey sideways with its sharp teeth, in order to kill it, before turning lengthwise to swallow.

It eats mainly fish, but on occasion water voles and ducklings have also been known to fall prey to Pike. It is moreover a cannibal and this cannibalism serves in maintaining stability in the Pike population. Young Pike have been photographed eating Pike of a similar size.

For more fish in our area, see Sea-run Brook Trout and Walleye.

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