Why do people release large pikes and should I too?
Are they more important in mating than smaller pike?
Hi all! So I am preparing to go ice fishing in a couple of weeks, and in the particular lake I am fishing, larger pike (over 60cm) are rare. I know a lot of people release large pike, and I wonder whether that is so that others may catch them too, or due to other reasons. It is in my best interest to keep this lake stocked with fish as It is a rather small lake, and so unless releasing large pike benefits the population I would prefer to keep them. Thanks!
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by elvis134334323
Also if anyone has any lure recommendations for ice fishing pike that would also be appreciated!
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by elvis134334323
Largest sucker minnow you can find, on a treble hook beneath a tip-up.
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by NovemberGale
Medium to large cisco or sucker on a quick strike rig under a tip up. It’s not super active fishing, but it’s productive when targeting large pike.
Otherwise, any jigging bait will work. I rarely target pike but catch them fishing for walleye or perch. Often on rattle baits, jigging raps, or spoons. Heck, even a jig and a minnow will catch them if they are around.
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by crzycanuk
I've never caught pike. Is it good eating? Mostly release large fish so they can spread their genetics and make more.
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by grigiri
Yeah they're pretty good. I either bake them with mayonnaise, dill, and lemon or cut them into strips parallel with the bones and fry them into little fritters so the bones dissolve.
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by Alternative_Reality
They are generally a bit dry, especially when older, but nothing a cook cant handle - baking, larded with Bacon is the old traditional way to prepare it here in germany.
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by Derhabour1
as you want to keep your lake well stocked with fish you should return the big pike, that might sound like a counter productive thing to do but it's not. Pike are cannibals and will eat their own, the big pike keep the number of jacks in check. If you remove the big pike, over time you'll end up with too many jacks and the number of other fish in your lake will decline. Always put the big ones back, they maintain natures balance👍
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by Mark_Carp
Pike are a top predator. They concentrate environmental pollutants. You should not eat large top predators and if you're not going to eat them you should get them back in the water as quickly as possible.
Source: am a fisherman who specializes in pike.
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by HDC3
not a pike Fisher, trout fisher here in Colorado and I release big fish so my fellow fishermen can catch them too. its works out for both of us.
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by skipperskippy
I've heard pike aren't the tastiest fish so people just leave them, not sure about mating but they are cannibals.
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by Schr1mpy
You want to leave the larger of any species in the lake in order to maintain the genetic gean pool. So many times people take the trophy fish out of lakes and they lose the predator aspect and you see the lake become over run with an over population of stunted fish EXAMPLE You have a lake with blue gill and shad for forage for either bass or catfish. If you don't have enough large bas or catfish to control the forage population they overpopulate and become stunted . What a lot of people who have private lakes do up north here do is stock HYBRED MUSKEYS which are voracious feeders but do not breed to help keep things in balance. Nature usually balances out itself but when we interfere that's when it's time to step in. That may be the best reason to put that larger fish back (besides the smaller ones are tastier). Kind of long winded but it's something I VERY much believe in.
One more thing the Canadians laugh at us Americans that we go for the walleyes for food. Kind of like we laugh at others for going after carp. I'm told they eat mostly the pike. It is a solid white very tasty firm sweet flesh that I have had many times, Hard to clean and get the y bones out but worth the effort. A chain in Wis. that I fish is over populated with undersized pike and they want you to keep all you catch. I have a friend that used to cut them into one inch chunks and pickle them and the bones would be dissolved man were they ever good. but that was for pike that were undersized like 14-18" which are illegal to take most anywhere else.
Lee Wolf was a hilly on some rover in Nova Scoha(sp) any how he would not allow his customers large fish. Unless they were a trophy fish (Atlantic Salmon) on the 40lb class. Over the years his stream kept up numbers of really good while other steams lost the numbers of 20 lb fish. The point is that big fish beget big fish. So take a picture and let it go. Your children will be able to catch big fish also
Lee Wolf was the man in charge of his section of river not a hilly.
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