For those of us living in the northeast, or any of the thirty-two states that support Northern Pike, there are prehistoric predators patrolling our lakes, ponds, and rivers. Northerns, alongside their closest relatives pickerel and muskies, have gone virtually unchanged for nearly sixty-five million years and are apex predators in every body of water they inhabit. Like a freshwater tiger shark, pike are often referred to as living dumpsters and are willing to attack anything that might be able to fit down their gullet. They regularly feed on all sorts of baitfish and juvenile or even mature game fish species, as well as ducklings, frogs, or rodents.
There are some who have come to think of these fish as vile varmints with insatiable appetites, but nothing could be further from the truth. Maybe they gained their reputation due to their menacing set of teeth or their thick coating of slime; which for many of us automatically equates to a monster who will devour anything that it comes across. On the contrary, pike are rather conservative hunters and only feed when necessary. The real danger to our waters are invasive species such as asian white carp, lionfish, or snakeheads. Pike are one of the key species that help maintain healthy ecosystems in our fresh bodies of water.
Their long, slender profile is broken up by the spotted patterning across their scales, concealing them against the beds of lake weeds while they stalk their prey. They are as much of an ambush hunter in the water as any python or cottonmouth on land, lunging in quick, split-second strikes. The tops of their heads earned them the common nickname, gators, and they sense their prey’s movement in the water through the enlarged pores that line their bottom jaw.
Somehow among the vicious rows of dagger-like teeth, snake-like body, and advanced predatory traits there is a captivating beauty to them. I admire the green and yellow hues that decorate their unique patterning, yet their beauty is far more than scale deep. They do a major part in keeping fish populations in balance, including their own for they do not shy away from cannibalism, resulting in a healthy and thriving ecosystem throughout the lake or pond. Largemouth bass is one of those species of aggressive fish that, without the presence of pike, could take over a lake and put too much pressure on the populations of crappie, perch, trout, etc. Pike, being opportunistic hunters, will eat whatever is most abundant, if the largemouth population gets a little too high then naturally the pike will be eating more largemouth and the same goes for every other fish species they coexist with. And I’m not saying they only eat the little yearling bass; I’ve a thirty-plus-inch northern come out from under a nearby dock, widen its massive jaws, and drilled the two pound bass on my line.
For fishermen, their willingness to strike a lure (or fish) right against the boat offers an exciting experience that is rare for most other freshwater game fish. Watching a big northern emerge out of gloomy water to engulf your swimbait, shortly followed by the hefty bend in your rod which flexes with every head shake, rivets a smile to your face and creates memories that can last a lifetime. Although they aren’t the hardest fighters, the weight of the bigger ones are more than enough to test the limits of most freshwater setups. I’ve always been impressed with the size of the baits and lures these fish are willing to hit, as I often use saltwater grade jerkbaits at six or more inches in length and soft tailed jigs at roughly similar sizes. I have also caught them with my fly rod using the minnow imitation flies that I typically use to target schoolie stripers. In the past years, I’ve caught my biggest pike just before the saltwater season begins in the spring (around April and May) and after it ends in the fall (just before the whitetail rut in November). Pike are still active throughout the year though, being hauled up through the ice in the dead of winter and crushing top water frogs through lily pads in the summer heat.
They inhabited this planet millions of years before our ancestors knew how to walk on two feet and they’re still around, unchanged and scattered across the thousands of lakes, ponds, and rivers contained within the northeast. In my eyes, these fish are elegant in the way they hone in on their prey and accurately strike within the blink of an eye-- leaving behind nothing but a cloud of scales in their wake. They are a truly remarkable and unique species, and hopefully this post will help pike gain the respect they deserve as the rightful apex predators of our fresh bodies of water.
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