01-30-2014, 09:11 PM
I am glad someone discussed the issue from a somewhat fisheries stand point. It starts out with zooplankton and phytoplankton. Then insects and some small fish. then larger fish, frogs, crayfish, ect. Then perch, carp, ect. The pike are by far the largest predator in the body of water. Being so, they have no or very little predation as adults. Thus, the fish will over populate and will be stunted. Once this happens other measures will be taken. To keep a population of larger pike you must have some predation taking place. Something else to remember about northern pike is that they are in essence a cold water species. In cold water they can et bigger and live longer then in hot water. In hot water they grow much more rappidly but die off quicker. Taking pike out inside a good slot wont hurt the population as much as you would think. Taking the fish out allows for the walleye to come back as well as perch due to the larger pike taking more of these species. Carp is a whole other subject. Those fish are hearty and its hard to bring down the poputaion. Fisheries management is dependant on so many factors and can at times be extremely tough. I think by having some of the adult pike taken out it will help everyone wanting to fish "their" species. I am all for the mangement of one to help the others. Its better to show support as the biologist went to school for these types of issues.
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