If there is any confusion, promote native fish species and get rid of the others to the extent possible.
Invasive fish (northern pike) threatens Maine lakes. Huh?
- Thread starter Glenn MacGrady
- Start date
Hayden Lake in Idaho doesn't seem to have an insurmountable problem with housing non-native northern pike along with salmon, bass, trout and other game fish. They control the pike with gill netting and unlimited catching.
"The exceptionally clear waters of this lake are teeming with game fish, including bass (largemouth and smallmouth), bullhead catfish, kokanee salmon, yellow perch, rainbow trout, sunfish (such as bluegill and pumpkinseed), and white crappie. But the game fish that had all of Idaho talking in March 2023 was the northern pike."
. . . .
"The northern pike is classified as a game fish in Idaho. The lakes where northern pikes have been illegally introduced have ironically become some of the state’s most popular fisheries. In a seeming contradiction, this non-native fish that has created an ecological problem has also been an economic positive. Large numbers of anglers such as Thomas Francis purchase state fishing licenses to target this aggressive, hard-fighting fish.
"In the state’s efforts to suppress the number of northern pike in its northern lakes, fishing for the species is unregulated. IDFG wants anglers to remove as many northern pike as possible from the state’s waters, so there are no limits on pike harvests. Catch-and-release pike tournaments are prohibited.
"When anglers harvest northern pike from these waters, it’s a win-win."
"The exceptionally clear waters of this lake are teeming with game fish, including bass (largemouth and smallmouth), bullhead catfish, kokanee salmon, yellow perch, rainbow trout, sunfish (such as bluegill and pumpkinseed), and white crappie. But the game fish that had all of Idaho talking in March 2023 was the northern pike."
. . . .
"The northern pike is classified as a game fish in Idaho. The lakes where northern pikes have been illegally introduced have ironically become some of the state’s most popular fisheries. In a seeming contradiction, this non-native fish that has created an ecological problem has also been an economic positive. Large numbers of anglers such as Thomas Francis purchase state fishing licenses to target this aggressive, hard-fighting fish.
"In the state’s efforts to suppress the number of northern pike in its northern lakes, fishing for the species is unregulated. IDFG wants anglers to remove as many northern pike as possible from the state’s waters, so there are no limits on pike harvests. Catch-and-release pike tournaments are prohibited.
"When anglers harvest northern pike from these waters, it’s a win-win."
Largest Northern Pike Ever Caught in Idaho Was An Absolute Monster
I believe in Mid-Atlantic states the muskie that are stocked are what they call tiger muskie, a hybrid between northern pike and muskellunge. Because they are a hybrid, they are unable to reproduce, and thus they do not establish themselves in the same way the northern pike are doing in Maine...
There is no shortage of places in which one may catch a pike if one so desires. Just say'n.
