Chasing Northern Pike under Ice: Long‐Distance Movements Following Catch‐and‐Release Ice Angling

Abstract

Catch-and-release ice angling is a popular recreational activity, but little is known about the postrelease behavior of fish in the winter. Cold water temperatures and an ambush hunting strategy may constrain Northern Pike Esox lucius, limiting their postrelease movements to a small area near the capture location. We used manual acoustic telemetry to track 15 Northern Pike ranging from 56 to 98.5 cm total length for up to 7 d after catch-andrelease ice angling in Buffalo Pound Lake, Saskatchewan, Canada. All of the fish but one moved unexpectedly long distances of several km over the tracking period. For the fish that were tracked over all 7 d, path lengths traveled ranged from 1.4 to 18.4 km. The minimum daily distance traveled ranged from 0 to 4.6 km and varied significantly by tracking day; the fish moved shorter distances on day 4 postrelease. There was a significant interaction between fish size and day postrelease; larger fish moved shorter minimum daily distances and dispersed shorter distances from the release site over the first 2 d of tracking. In contrast, by 5 d after release, both the largest and smallest fish had dispersed the longest distances from the release site and intermediate-sized fish dispersed the least. The cumulative path length traveled by day 5 of tracking did not reveal any significant size-based patterns. Our study raises the possibility that relatively large movements may be common for Northern Pike in the winter despite cold water temperatures and their expected foraging behavior. In addition, postrelease behavior varies with fish size. Habitat and space requirements for Northern Pike in the winter can encompass much larger areas and more habitat features than has been previously envisioned.

Catch‐and‐Release Ice Fishing: Status, Issues, and Research Needs

“…Telemetry technology enables the monitoring of activity levels (e.g., when equipped with acceleration sensors) as well as depth and water temperature (e.g., Eberts et al 2018aEberts et al , 2018b, which may be key factors for evaluating important influences on postrelease behavior in the winter. Telemetry has been used recently to track Northern Pike movements under the ice after ice angling, which shows promise that this technology can be successfully implemented in such studies (Somers et al 2021). Underwater drones could also be potentially used to visually monitor fish under the ice, as this technology has been implemented in recording fish behavior and community composition assessments previously in aquatic environments, albeit under ice-free conditions (Skomal et al 2015;Hawkes et al 2020;Raoult et al 2020;Maslin et al 2021).…”

“…Telemetry has been used recently to track Northern Pike movements under the ice after ice angling, which shows promise that this technology can be successfully implemented in such studies (Somers et al. 2021). Underwater drones could also be potentially used to visually monitor fish under the ice, as this technology has been implemented in recording fish behavior and community composition assessments previously in aquatic environments, albeit under ice‐free conditions (Skomal et al.…”

An examination of freezing in yellow perch ( Perca flavescens ) following ice fishing using a histological approach

“…However, only a handful of studies have characterized the biological response to ice fishing, making it difficult to confidently define the fate of fish that have been released through the ice. Of the few studies that have been conducted to date on ice fishing, most have largely focused on hooking location and delayed mortality (Althoff et al, 2020; Dextrase & Ball, 1991; DuBois et al, 1994; Persons & Hirsch, 1994; Somers et al, 2021; Twardek et al, 2018), and sub‐lethal physiological and behavioural consequences (Bieber et al, 2019; Logan et al, 2019; Louison, Hasler, Fenske, et al, 2017; Louison, Hasler, Raby, et al, 2017; Winter et al, 2018). Generally, findings suggest deeply hooked fish are susceptible to higher rates of delayed mortality, and that stress biomarkers like cortisol, glucose, and lactate are low and/or delayed in comparison to similar studies completed during warmer months (Logan et al, 2019; Louison, Hasler, Fenske, et al, 2017; Louison, Hasler, Raby, et al, 2017).…”

Ice fishing reveals size structure but not abundance of Eurasian perch in small boreal lakes

“…Typically, a hook and line, including light rod, and a small vertical lure that is rigged with monofilament line strip to a horizontally placed single hook, “mormyshka”, with natural bait is used for catching small‐bodied fishes (Kekäläinen et al, 2014; Orru et al, 2014) while some artificial lures can be used for trophy‐sized perch and other predatory fishes. Catch and release is usually practiced only in specialised angling for larger predatory fish such as pikeperch ( Sander lucioperca ) and pike ( Esox lucius ) (Somers et al, 2021). Being a very accessible form of fishing (e.g., ice fishing is licence‐free and considered everyman's right in Finland), traditional ice fishing could produce citizen science data on many small waterbodies that normally lack any organised monitoring efforts.…”