Pike Movements

[riverside]

Hi

 

I have never actually started a thread before so here goes.

 

Reading a post on how old pike live for prompted me to ask about the movements of pike, particularly in rivers. I believe I have had recaptures on the same day from the same swim but have any of you had recaptures from different swims. If so, what distance apart and over what time period?

[Dave Horton]

Hi

 

I have never actually started a thread before so here goes.

 

Reading a post on how old pike live for prompted me to ask about the movements of pike, particularly in rivers. I believe I have had recaptures on the same day from the same swim but have any of you had recaptures from different swims. If so, what distance apart and over what time period?

 

 

I firmly believe that you get some Pike that are Nomadic, some that seem to reside in a very localised area and yet others that do a bit of both or fit in somewhere in between those two types? But I can be wrong!

[gozzer]

I firmly believe that you get some Pike that are Nomadic, some that seem to reside in a very localised area and yet others that do a bit of both or fit in somewhere in between those two types? But I can be wrong!

 

The movement of any predater must be governed by the movement of its food.

So when the shoal fish move the pike will move with them.

[Newt]

From what I've seen and read, structure-oriented top pred fish (and that group includes pike) will behave differently depending on their size & age.

 

The larger fish will find a good spot that offers easy meals with least effort and take up residence. They will only move away if they are displaced by a larger fish that can bully them. Short trips maybe but only if the food supply dries up will they want to change locations.

 

Smaller fish will be much more nomadic and follow the shoals of bait fish rather than waiting for the shoals to come to them.

 

Medium size fish will be the most variable. Unless the stretch of water is really loaded with good hiding places, many won't be able to take up residence even if they are old and large enough to want it. However, they also probably won't exihibit the bahavior of the smaller preds and simply tag along with a shoal of food where ever it goes.

[argyll]

I think pike in river systems will move as river conditions and food availibility dictate. Spate conditions in a river can drive pike a fair way from their normal habitat.

 

There are a few known fish that usually feed in and just below a thames weirpool. After a few days rain they'll be found anything up to 3 miles away. I can only vouch for recaptures of two known low doubles in the last few years, but I can point at the complete absence of sport in certain areas when floodwater is coming down river and at that point I know where I'm likely to have better sport.

 

They will also follow the silver fish shoals which I find are likely to migrate a fair distance. I seem to remember reading about recaptures that took place over a distance of 13 miles. I suspect that pike are no different to any other predator, fish or otherwise...stay with the food until it dries up and them move on.

[andyml]

hi folks,

 

just thought i'd chuck my two penn'orth in.....

 

i guess that repeat captures in rivers - or lakes for that matter - aren't that surprising really.

the pike was hungry, attempted to feed (on your bait), expended energy in the fight and still had no food intake....hence repeat capture.

 

even great care must be taken when returning fish under these curcumstances.

 

fish will nearly always be found in the "comfort zone" as jim gibbinson wrote!

 

tight lines all

 

<')Andy<

[Elton]

Also, when you put a pike back, it often just sits there getting it's breath back, so to speak.

 

I've had a few repeat captures and put it down to being revived, thinking "I'm stil hungry" and grabbing the same bait!

[Dick Dastardly]

The results from several tagging programmes Ive been involved in tend to support Daves statement that some pike move a lot more than others. This strangely isnt water specific but from individual fish to fish.The current research on one of these proggrammes is trying to find out wether resident or nomadic pike stick to the same thing all of their lives or change.

[Dave Horton]

The movement of any predater must be governed by the movement of its food.

So when the shoal fish move the pike will move with them.

 

Undoubtedly gozzer, food must have a huge baring on Pike movents but there must be other, though probably less impactive, elements at play too?

 

 

The results from several tagging programmes Ive been involved in tend to support Daves statement that some pike move a lot more than others. This strangely isnt water specific but from individual fish to fish.The current research on one of these proggrammes is trying to find out wether resident or nomadic pike stick to the same thing all of their lives or change.

 

I'd be very interested in the out come of that one Budgie?

[Leon Roskilly]

Pike will often use sunlight and shadow to ambush their prey.

 

As the sun moves around a lake, they need to reposition themselves relative to a feature, perhaps moving to a new feature where the light conditions give them better ambush conditions.

 

That could be one reason why certain swims, certain waters have definite feeding spells, then go dead as the lighting changes, as the sun moves round.

 

Just a theory.