PUT THE BIG ONES BACK

Preserving Pike

By Bill Schneider, 1-24-08

They don't call it the water wolf for nothing. To some trout fanciers, pike, as in northern pike, is consummate four-letter word, just like wolf is to some ranchers and elk hunters. And for the same reason. Both species eat our prized native game species.

But there is a big difference. The wolf has a large constituency supporting its preservation, but when you go out and advocate preserving pike, especially here in the New West, here in Trout Country, you can feel mighty lonely.

Well, I guess I'll just have to learn to live with a little loneliness.

The wolf and the pike have another common trait, their undiscriminating appetite. Just as the wolf efficiently kills and eats anything that breathes, the pike efficiently kills and eats anything that swims, including sensitive species like the bull trout and westslope cutthroat.

	How to handle a big pike. Photo by Gene Colling.

Trout, suckers, ducklings, snakes, squirrels; it’s all just fuel to the water wolf. Hence the scorn the pike gets from Orvis aficionados and biologists charged with managing indigenous species. And hence the near-unlimited regulations for killing pike--no limits with any fishing method encouraged, even spearing--common in Montana and other western "trout states."

Before I cast any farther into these troubled waters, I should say, I like trout, too. I have a drift boat, a dozen expensive fly rods, and at least a million dollars invested in flies, and I spend no less than twenty days every year out on the river catching and carefully releasing trout, even those evasive, non-native species known as rainbow and brown trout.

But I also like pike. In fact, fly fishing for pike is about a good as fishing gets. Too bad I have to go to Canada to do it because we treat pike like a pestilence here in the New West.

Western Montana, for example, has some great pike habitat and pike fishing used to be decent, but now, it has deteriorated badly. I could go on a rant and blame the endangered species biologists and the wildlife agencies for the ridiculously liberal regulations, but not today. I blame pike anglers for the decline.

When I go pike fishing in western Montana, I'm usually on lakes that also have good trout fisheries, but guess what, most anglers I see are targeting pike, not trout. When they catch a trout, it's a disappointment.

The emphasis on preserving native species is not going to change, nor should it, so that leaves pike preservation in the hands of we pike anglers. We have to stop killing all the pike we catch, which, regrettably, is pretty much the norm, especially this time of year when ice fishing and spearing for pike is popular.

	How not to treat a big pike. Photo courtesy of Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks.

I decided to write this column in January because pike are particularly vulnerable to bait fishing through the ice. Again, I have no problem with ice fishing for pike--I've done that, too--but I do have heartburn with the kill-every-pike-we-catch attitude.

I also have no problem eating a few pike. In fact, I think they rival walleye for table fare. But I only keep a few "eaters" in the 3- to 5-pound range. Taking some of these juveniles out of the population probably improves it, but taking out the big breeders can destroy a pike population. We must put the big pike back.

If we catch a trophy pike, we should practice CPR (Catch-Photograph-Release). If we want to hang our prize above the fireplace, take a few photos and measurements (length and girth) and take them to almost any taxidermist and buy a replica mount, which looks better and last longer than a real mount.

I recently edited a book called, Pro Tactics Northern Pike, which will be published this fall. Here's how pro pike angler and author Jack Penny calls it.

"I have witnessed the destruction of great pike water in just a few seasons," Penny writes. "It is a matter of genetics, plain and simple. A lake will have just so many big predators in it. And the higher up the food chain a species gets, the fewer of them there will be. In the waters that they live in, pike are at or very near the top. So naturally there are fewer of them. Once they are removed or killed, it takes quite awhile for the next contender to grow big enough to replace its older sister. If this happens continually, the upcoming year class won't be able to keep up. Pretty soon that year class will be getting whittled down too. It doesn't take many years of this before all there are is small fish in the system.

"Fish are like people," Penny continues. "When two humans of large stature mate, their offspring will have the potential to also grow large. It would be rare for two people five feet tall to produce offspring that would grow to be six feet tall. It is the same for pike. Big pike produce big pike. Small pike produce small pike."

In his book, Penny goes into great detail on how to photograph and release big pike with minimal mortality, such as using cradles instead of nets and not holding the fish vertically because it damages internal organs. Witness the two photosthe first from my recent trip to Oliver Lake and the second from Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks website of a pike on a stringer that died before or after the photo was taken.

In Canada, wildlife agencies actively promote pike preservation. In many popular Canadian pike waters, anglers must use barbless hooks and can only keep one pike per day for a shore lunch. And guess what, pike fishing is better than ever with 40-inch-plus pike being fairly common.

This fantastic fishery keeps hundreds of fishing lodges afloat and provides thousands of outdoor jobs along the way. I know it will never be like this south of the border, but if we anglers take control and do what the agencies won't or can't do, we can have much better pike fishing here, too.

[End of article]

Pike are treated like a pestilence in Montana because that is exactly what they are, an ILLEGALLY INTRODUCED PEST. Pike do NOT belong in Montana, they are harming what have always been natural trout fisheries and should be completely erradicated. As far as the endangered bull trout goes, I've heard it said from a fisheries biologist with FWP that they have found more bull trout than they ever knew existed in the bellies of pike out of Milltown reservior.

I witnessed pike migrating up the Milk River into the South Fork and Middle Fork branches. There are no trout left. They don't play nice with other species. I prefer to see them removed.

Bill,

Please do not insult the wolf by trying to make comparison to pike.

The fatal flaw in your analysis is the fact that wolf predation on elk, deer, etc. was part of the evolutionary history of the species. Wolves were native, extirpated and recently reintroduced.

Pike are not native, and they were introduced, in some cases illegally. Trout and other native fishes did not evolve with pike in the headwaters of the northern rockies.

You claim you like trout. Yet you fail to acknowledge the deliterious effect of an invasive species like pike have on trout.

Barney

I practice my own ill-informed biology when I fish for pike (which I love to do). If I'm at a lake like Salmon or Seeley, I release absolutely everything of apex quality. I'll even forgo a smaller, eating sized fish in favor of something more readily available such as perch. I do, however, kill a pike once in awhile when I catch them where they shouldn't be -- as in the Blackfoot River or upper end of Flathead Lake.

On the other hand, I'm a hypocrite because my secret fishing spot is a pike fishery like I've found nowhere else--in close range of Missoula and in a spot where I should probably kill everything I catch.

Illegally introduced Pike have twice lead to the poisoning of Lake Davis in California in an attempt to get rid of the damned things before they got into the California Delta and ate what was left of our Salmon and Steelhead runs.

So sure -- protect Pike IN THEIR NORMAL RANGES, but where they don't belong... well... they don't belong.

Even a relatively intelligent outdoorsman would understand that, which leads me to wonder if this isn't simply another troll by New West's leading practitioner of the art.

I think Montana has a unique species of pike, unlike other states, that is referred to by their copulating abilities. The usual statement of excitement by trout anglers is to say, "gawddamn it, another FP."

Regarding 4-legged land pike, it looks like Montana FWP is going to take an active management interest: http://www.montanasnewsstation.com/Global/story.asp?S=7768769&nav=menu227_6/Global/story.asp?S=1824074,menu227_8_3_2

>>>>>>>>>>>>
Montana FWP to manage gray wolves

Posted: Jan 24, 2008 10:28 AM PST
Updated: Jan 25, 2008 07:48 AM PST


Montana state wildlife agents will soon be given more latitude to shoot wolves under a new rule being published by the federal government.

The ruling allows state game agencies to kill endangered gray wolves that prey on wildlife in the Northern Rockies.

In the coming weeks nearly 1,500 wolves in Montana, Idaho and Wyoming are expected to come off the endangered species list.

This latest ruling allows is for state wildlife agents to kill packs of wolves if they can prove that the animals are having a "major impact" on big game herds such as elk, deer and moose.

Montana Governor Brian Schweitzer supports this latest move by federal wildlife officials...
<<<<<<<<<<<

When will the governor and FWP respond to trout pouters? I suggest legalizing cabide lures with waterproof fuses to bring a little boom to the pike fishing experience.

Haw.
I remember fishing with my dad and we'd always desultorily argue over whether we were fishing for walleye or trout versus pike.
I'll never forget the monster pike and tiger muskies I've hooked. Just an absolute blast, more fun than boneheaded cutthroats, no matter the size.
I really don't understand the Aryanization of many fisheries in Montana. Most of us got into fishing and hunting because it is flat out fun to get on a productive fishery full of fat, mean fish that keep your rod bent, native or managed. I see nothing wrong with browns in the Smith, for example, and with whirling disease, well, that might be the only option until GM gives us "native" WD-proof stocks.
Let's not forget that for a long, long time, bull trout were not thought well of. Rainbows and cutthroats were "better" so in the fall, what would we do to spawner Dollies?
This is about which fish we like "more."

In the "Treasure State" we mine everything, including pike. The only thing missing is a liberal spear fishing season for pike and other illegally-planted fish. This, and a (6" blade limit) knife season for grizzlies, would offer more manly outdoor experiences with international appeal. Just think of the jobs it would create.

Liberal spear???? Are they the ones with the blunt plastic orange tips and the flexible rubber shafts that can bend in any direction given which way the wind is blowing? In that game of tag, where keeping score would not be allowed as it might scar the psyche of some of the spear tossers, I think the pike win. Can't we just net pike, fatten them up on some organic feed pellets, then feed them to the wolves to increase the glossiness of their coats before Montana begins the hunt later this year? (sorry! my sarcasm button is stuck 'ON' with this keyboard. I'll place a call to Geek Squad.)

Although I have a great deal of respect for Bill Schnieder, he's wrong in his assertions about pike in western Montana trout waters. I've worked for 12 years on Seeley and Salmon Lakes as a fish biologist. Bull trout density in Seeley Lake has declined by 73 % in a decade since northern pike were illegally introduced in 1997. Northern pike have depleted their food supply in Seeley and Salmon Lakes, and their growth is becoming stunted. Average length of northern pike has declined by 18 %. It's due to overexploitation of their food supply not overharvest. Condition factor and food habits studies confirm that. Pike do not belong in western Montana trout waters. They are as harmful to our trout waters as spotted knapweed is to our grasslands. I believe fishermen should kill every pike they catch in trout waters west of the continental divide. There are plenty of places to fish for pike in their native range. They do not belong in western Montana.

White People are a pestilence in Montana because they are, an ILLEGALLY INTRODUCED PEST. White People do NOT belong in Montana, they are harming what have always been natural trout fisheries and should be completely erradicated.

jedediah, on behalf of my Solutrian ancestors who were here first, I welcome you to share this land and all its bounty. Please take all the pike you want.

On the other hand the Nubian Olmecs may have been here before the Solutrian Frogs.
I've always taken the position that there are just so many ways a guy can make a flint point; so New Mexico or France might just be an excuse for an argument about flint chips...

"...the wolf efficiently kills and eats anything that breathes..."
Despite many fairy tales to the contrary, there is no evidence that a wolf has ever killed a human being...

jedediah, recent inquest proceedings in Canada concluded that a man was killed and partially eaten by wolves. To my knowledge, there are no reported pike related deaths.

I probably should have said credible evidence, craigie...

jedediah, that's the only kind accepted at a coroner's inquest jury proceeding.

Now, regarding killer pike, there was an Austrian lake closed due to people being attacked. No deaths however. http://floydssecrets.blogspot.com/2007/08/pike-attacks-swimmers-austria.html

Returning to the column topic, I suggest pickling: http://www.jeffsundin.com/EBFrecipes.htm

Bill, good topic.
If I may; from an Idaho standpoint.
I have heard this "they will eat all the trout" bull crap from all you trout purist for years - only applied to walleye.

Case in point - Salmon Falls Creek Res. Idaho. Since the original planting in 1974 of micro fry walleye, it has NEVER failed to produce an OUTSTANDING trout fishery. SFC is currently one of - if not the best -trout fishery in the state for producing large 3-5# plus trout. And through efforts of THE IDAHO WALLEYE UNLIMITED and their huge volunteer habitat improvement projects(the trout boys wanted no part in this, their thoughts were to "plant more trout" - read cost the department hundreds of thousands of dollars) the fishery now has outstanding growth rate for ALL species. 146 trout waters in the state of Idaho, 4 that have walleye and we are begrudged those.

As management goes, warm water is pennies on the dollar to cold water, and with global warming many marginal trout waters will cost more and more to manage or eliminated. 46% of Idaho fishermen site warm water fishing as their preference yet IDFG devotes less than 15% of its fisheries budget to warm water.

That said "bucket Biology" is knuckle-dragging, chew-drooling, in-bred thinking to somehow "know more dan dem kolidge edicated bi-a-low-gists" and should be a felony with sterilization of the offenders entire gene pool mandatory.

As far as the challange of catching.... give me the top of the food chain. Any body can catch trout. Fish with teeth are my personal preference. Like they say "Musky's, 'cause all other fish are just bait."
Or, "10 hours, 1500 casts, two rises, one follow. God, I hope it's this good tomorrow".
Bottomline is that it is all about wetting a line and feeling the wiggle (or arm-twisting, rod-breaking thumps and runs) on the end of the line. Weather you are beating the water to a froth with a nymph, or pitching a 10 oz, foot long rip stick, or trolling a bottom-bouncer and crawler harness - we all have our loves, respect each others passion and trust me, there IS enough fish and room for ALL of us.

Jedediah, that's the only kind accepted at a coroner's inquest jury proceeding.
I'll repeat Craigie. There has been no credible evidence of any wolf ever killing homo sapiens...

JEd-E-Bare, have you heard pike howl? http://www.searchingwolf.com/chorus3.wav

Not for awhile, craigie; but I've heard a lot of ducks farting under water recently...

Pike are beautiful creatures and we need to do all we can to preserve the fishery...if you do not believe so check out http://www.bigstrike.ca

but pike tastes great.