Things Pike Fishermen Should Know

The northern pike spawns in the spring and spawning takes place immediately after the ice is off our lakes and rivers in early April or May. Water temperatures at this time of year range between 40 and 50 degrees Fahrenheit (4.4-11.1 degrees Celsius). The spawning run for a single female lasts about nine days reaching a peak six or seven days after the initial set of eggs. After seven days the run declines rapidly and finally ends on the ninth day. Over the period the water temperatures average about 48 degrees Fahrenheit (nine degrees Celsius).
This species generally spawns during daylight hours on heavily vegetated flood plains of rivers, marshes and bays or our larger lakes and rivers. One spawning run of 6000 mature pike was tabulated in a single creek tributary in a Northern Ontario Lake.
The sexes pair at spawning time and the larger females are usually attended by one large male or two or more smaller ones. They swim through and over the vegetation in the shallow water often not much deeper than seven or eight inches (178-190mm). At intervals the female will deposit eggs on or in the vegetation and the males will cover them with milt. A thrusting of the tail, which scatters the eggs and moves the adult fish to a new spawning area, follows each spawning act.
The spawning act is repeated many times every day over a three to five day period.
There is no nest built and the eggs are scattered at random, usually in groups of from five to sixty eggs at a time. The eggs are about one tenth of an inch (3mm) in diameter, clear, amber in colour and very adhesive. As a result they remain on the vegetation in the spawning area until they hatch.
Egg numbers as high as 595,000 have been reported and they increase with the size of the female. The weight of the eggs has been estimated at 9000 per pound. The number of eggs deposited is high, and the fertility rate is usually over 50% but the number of young that, actually survive is very low.
It has been estimated in one study that of approximately one million eggs laid only 1800 young survived to leave the spawning grounds. This represents a 99.8% mortality rate.
The status of the pike population in local lakes is not clearly known or understood. I have heard from many ardent fishermen that there are not as many fish in our waters as there once were.
There are so many factors involved that it is difficult to put the blame any one offender. Increased amounts of acid rain, ultraviolet light caused by ozone depletion, over fishing, chemical pollution, destruction of natural shorelines and natural spawning habitat all contribute in one way or another to the reduction in fish numbers.
What can we do? First be involved in a catch and release program. Do not fish illegally; the rules are made to help preserve our fish stocks. Be a conscientious conservationist when fishing. Or be like me. Go to fish but do not catch anything.
Speaking of Nature
Jim Ferguson, 5313 River Road, R.R.5, Renfrew, Ontario k7V 3Z8 Phone 613-432-2738 email jamesh@nrtco.net