Northern Pike - the Freshwater Barracuda!

Northern pike are found almost all around the world. They range from northwestern Europe, across northern Asia, to northern North America and as you study the pike in these different regions of the world, you do find variations but they all are the same species. Northern pike spawn in late March to early May, right after the ice out. Northern pike spawn in shallow marshes if available, particularly if there is abundant flooded and aquatic vegetation. Northern pike spawning and egg incubation occurs when water temperatures are from 45 to 60° F. Northern pike fry feed on plankton and small invertebrates but quickly switch to fish. Northern pike don't want to expend much energy in eating, so they focus their eating missions on as large a fish that they can swallow. Northern pike, however, aren't picky eaters. When they are hungry they will also eat leeches, frogs and crayfish.

Pike have a very elongated body, with a very long head. Pike are dark green to olive green, with white mainly oval spots. Pike have a small gold spot on the tip of most of it's scales which gives it the appearance of being covered in gold fleck. Pike have large teeth, which point backwards into their mouth, keeping their prey from escaping. Pike usually have five pairs of sensory pores along the underside of the lower jaw.Pike prefer to live in shallow clear waters that hold a significant amount of underwater vegetation. Pike are not finicky eaters however and will often eat insects, frogs, mice, young muskrats, and ducklings.

These voracious predators are one of the easiest fish to catch because they are so willingly to hit lures. There is usually no question that a pike has hit your lure. Pike are also taken on live bait rigs with minnows, leeches and even worms. Artifical lures often catch Pike when fished along the edges of weed beds. The traditional methods of trolling and casting with spoons, spinners and plugs for trophy pike is always effective in catching truly monstorous pike. Pike favor weedy haunts, so pike anglers usually concentrate on drop-offs at the edge of weedy bays or points. Pike will usually be found in the summer in warm shallow water with lots of weed cover where they easily ambush their prey with the least expenditure of energy.

Pike's desire to hang in shallower water has spawned, pun intended, the advent of fly fishing for northern pike. Fly fishing for northern pike makes it converts and keeps them because of how savagely the pike hit a fly. The other factors that make them favorites for fly fishermen is that are good fighters, pike grow to a large size, and they are easier to catch then some of the other types of fish.

Northern pike are a popular game fish because they put up a terrific fight when caught.
Northern pike are romanticized in more myths and tall tales than any other freshwater game fish. Northern pike tend to elicit strong reactions among anglers: some consider this fish one of the greatest of all freshwater warriors, while others consider them a nuisance. Catch and release fishing is catching on among anglers and it will ensure that we can continue to see this fishery of Northern Pike in years to come!