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Striking pike


The Flying Tench

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I was fishing a small weirpool today with little success, which I put down to the fact that there was so much pike activity. Endlessly smaller fish, from tiny ones to half pound size, would leap out of te water presumably trying to escape a predator.

 

In my mind I was assuming it was just one pike, in which case he kept missing, otherwise, surely, he'd have quietened down after having his nosh? Though, of course, it could have been several pike.

 

Which brings me to my question. Does anyone have any idea how many times on average a pike strikes at a prey fish before he catches one?

 

It occurs to me it could be quite a number of times. For example, I've always been puzzled by the stuff about predators not attacking fish below a certain size because the energy used up is greater than that gained from the food. I mean, the energy used in a strike must be quite small, relatively - think what a human can do on the kind of diet we have. BUT if you assume that a pike has to strike 20 times on average before he gets his fish, then the theory makes more sense.

 

Or am I talking a load of cobblers?

john clarke

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I wouldn't have thought it was that many times that a pike will strike and miss. Certainly not 20:1. Could it have been several predators? Perhaps small perch causing the small ones to jump and maybe a pike or two for the bigger ones? Also it's been discussed on here that sometimes pike may work in cooperation with each other to shepherd a shoal of fish into an area where the pike can pick them off more easily?

 

Alternatively the fish may have just been jumping to have a look to see if the angler was still there before deciding to feed - I'm sure that they do that just to wind us all up. :lol:

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Yes, sounds more like perch activity than pike activity. Perch work in shoals and nip at their prey to weaken them.

 

I think pike work in short bursts rather than chase their prey over longer distances. They rely on surprise rather than stamina. I'm sure they're not successful every time but I don't think they keep on chasing and chasing.

 

Interestingly, a pike doesn't have to eat much to increase its own weight. i.e. little goes to 'waste'. I have a video that says a pike only has to eat 3.4 pounds of fish to increase its own weight by 1lb. Whereas a trout has to eat 7.1 pounds to increase its weight by 1 pound.

 

Don't know if it's relevant but it's something I think is interesting!

 

Don't forget than chub and carp will eat small fry too................... I don't know how much they chase these fry though.

The best time to fish is when you have a chance.

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Have a look at the below you tube link. Pike behave differently to each other it seems. The first pike nudges at the bait, the other goes straight for it...

 

 

Interesting.

 

Simon

www.myspace.com/boozlebear

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I had the dubious pleasure of watching pike try to take every fish bar one small chub I hooked today. I was fishing a very small outflow from a lake on a ledge about ten feet above the water using worm or sweetcorn. The first roach got swiftly grabbed by a small pike which wouldn't let go but eventually bit through the line. The second two roach were both taken by a much larger pike, the first one it got straightaway but the second roach was a bit more wily and the pike missed once but then took it on the surface with a huge surge and a shower of scales erupted from the water.

 

Obviously I tried to bring the pike in but on a 2lb hooklength in fast water this would've been quite a feat and both times the pike let go enabling me to net the fish. The last roach was looking very worse for wear and a few minutes after being released there was a lot of splashing in the shallows as the larger pike finally got its meal.

 

I think I'm going to have to go back with some trace and a spinner or deadbait to catch this one, a very large fish for the size of the water.

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