TIGER MUSKY and Pike in Kawartha Lakes!! - Pics

[Slayingm]

Although I have heard rumors in the past that some Northern Pike have invaded Balsam lake through the locks from Canal lake I found what happened a couple days ago disturbing. I had some customers out on a guided fishing trip on Balsam lake and although we had a awesome day catching lots of nice Walleye we boated a Pike and only 5 minutes later we caught a Tiger Musky!! I have been fishing this lake for over 25 years and have never caught either species there before.

 

I sent these pics with some other details to the MNR for file (which they appreciated) and they confirmed with me the practice that any angler catching a Pike in any of the Kawartha lakes should keep it and not release.... this is exactly what we did. I fear that in a few years Balsam (and possibly other kawartha lakes) could go the way Canal and Dalrymple lakes did. They both used to be awesome Muskie fisheries years ago, followed by a few years of nice Tiger Muskie and now the Musky are pretty much gone and replaced by alot of smaller Pike.

 

 

 

One thing for sure is that the colours and bar patterns on a Tiger Muskie are absolutely beautiful... here is a pic of the one we boated:

 

Here is a pic of the Pike we caught and kept minutes before catching the Tiger Muskie:

 

Remember that if you ever catch a Pike on any of the Kawartha lakes KEEP IT!... also a good idea to contact the MNR and give them specifics in terms on lake, location etc.

 

 

Take care and Good Fish'n.... Greg.

Edited June 18, 2009 by Slayingm

[ciceri]

That Tiger Musky is a beaut. Will remember to keep pike if i ever catch one.

[ecmilley]

yup there slowly invading the kawarthas, I don't intend to let em go anyone got any good pike recipes

[steverowbotham]

A co-worker caught and kept a 40 inch pike out of Balsam on the weekend. I figured it was a musky, but the photo does not lie

[Victor]

I have also heard about people catching pike at Balsam, I used to fish that lake quite alot, hopefully it won't turn into another canal/dalrymple as you said.

 

I don't really know much about muskies so I'm hoping some of you more avid muskie anglers can fill me in, with regards to tiger muskies, I know that they're a hybrid of pike/musky, but do they do any harm to the fishery at all? Or is it just an indication to show that pike has started to invade the specific lake? Do tiger muskies behave any differently compared to regular muskies?

[DANIMAL]

Tiger muskies are sterile meaning they cant spawn. So they wont hurt the fishery. I have read they behave more like a pike. But pike and musky behave very similar.

[Jigger]

Was doing some reading the other day about pike in the kawarthas and came across this pdf file. Talks about tigers being in Scugog, Balsam and Pigeon. As well as identifying pike in Stony as early as the 80s. Pretty interesting stuff. Pike invading the Kawarthas talk starts around page 7 or 8.

 

MNR draft

[Musky or Specks]

No harm they have no clue how to reproduce. Pike however spawn earlier than musky and in a lake that previously had no pike use the same spawning habitat. The pike young demolish the musky young

[Jonny]

yup there slowly invading the kawarthas, I don't intend to let em go anyone got any good pike recipes

 

As long as you get boneless fillets off your pike, you can use any recipe that you use for pickerel. My wife actually prefers pike to pickerel --- she says there's a tiny bit more flavour.

 

Simplest thing --- wash fillets well, sprinkle with lemon juice, dredge in flour and fry crispy brown in hot oil with a generous dab of margarine melted in. Awesome.

 

---

 

Man, I have never seen a tiger muskie --- beautiful fish! Too bad they're sterile (unless you're worried about invasive concerns).

Edited June 18, 2009 by Jocko

[Garnet]

Caught 4 pike this year on Balsam and 2 last year. Also sent pic to MNR. Afraid it's to late.

 

Garnet

[Tom McCutcheon]

Northern Pike could potentialy destroy the Muskie fishery in the Kawarthas. It is a fact that Pike are invading the Kawarthas.

Recently a chapter of Muskies Canada has been established in Peterborough. Our mandate is to try to educate the public about the Northern Pike invasion through our KTD (know the difference) signs, help to protect and re-establish Muskie spawning areas, promote catch and release and also help the MNR with catch and release data through our Angler Logs.

This chapter hopes to make some progress in stopping this invasion.

 

We are a non profit organization and the monies raised from members and sponsor donations goes back in some way to the fishery.

 

 

 

Tom McCutcheon

Release Director

Kawartha Lakes Chapter

Muskies Canada

[Fisherpete]

These two tigers were caught on Balsam last June two days apart. Bigger one was 37". Never caught a pike out of Balsam yet, but have seen some on people's stringers. It would be really sad if Balsam turns into a Dalrymple type fishery. OFC'ers unite and CNE (catch and eat) all Pike from Balsam!!!!

 

 

 

On a positive note, we have caught a number of small muskies in the past few years as well, so at least there is still succesful spawning happening.

Edited June 19, 2009 by Fisherpete

[mattyk]

Here is a picture of a pike that I caught out of balsam two summers ago.

 

[izaakwalton]

A few questions about pike, tiger musky, and musky in the Kawarthas:

1. If caught, do tiger musky have to be kept as well? Although they are sterile, won't they be just as much a threat to musky hatchlings?

2. Are tiger musky edible? Do they taste similar to pike?

3. If pike are such a prized fish for their taste, shouldn't musky be similarly tasty? The argument for avoiding musky is that, as the top predator in the food chain, they contain the most mercury - but aren't pike the top predator in Simcoe, Dalrymple, Canal, etc.?

 

Looking forward to the responses. Thanks in advance.

Edited June 19, 2009 by izaakwalton

[John Bacon]

A few questions about pike, tiger musky, and musky in the Kawarthas:

1. If caught, do tiger musky have to be kept as well? Although they are sterile, won't they be just as much a threat to musky hatchlings?

2. Are tiger musky edible? Do they taste similar to pike?

3. If pike are such a prized fish for their taste, shouldn't musky be similarly tasty? The argument for avoiding musky is that, as the top predator in the food chain, they contain the most mercury - but aren't pike the top predator in Simcoe, Dalrymple, Canal, etc.?

 

Looking forward to the responses. Thanks in advance.

 

1. No, tiger muskies do not pose the same threat to young muskies as pike. It is not the adult pike that are a problem, it is the newly hatched pike. Pike spawn a few weeks earlier than muskie but spawn in the same locations. When the muskies hatch the pike that hatched a few weeks earlier will feed on the newly hatched muskies. Tiger muskies don't reproduce so they are not a problem. Muskies that co-exist with pike, such as those in Georgian Bay, are a different strain and spawn in deeper water than the Kawartha lake muskies; and thus, avoid the pike.

2. Probably, but I believe that you have to follow the muskie size limits when keeping tiger muskies.

3. I am not sure what a muskie tastes like, but I don't think that I would want to eat one that has attained legal keeping size. Most people who eat pike are probably not eating many four footers.

[Fisherpete]

The only muskie I have ever kept and eaten was a deeply hooked 36"/9 pounder that could not be revived despite trying for half an hour. It was actually pretty good, I would actually say maybe even better tasting than pike. Or maybe I was just really hungry that night LOL! That being said, I would not want to eat any Pike or Muskie that was 40"+, firstly because bigger fish of any species generally are not as good tasting as smaller ones, and secondly due to toxin build up in their tisssues from age. Keeping tigers really is not a bad thing, as they can't reproduce at all, but maybe you might want to let them go as they are so nice looking and someone else would love a chance to catch them!

[jediangler]

I would release any Tigers you catch in the Kawarthas. Letting another fisherman enjoy the unique opportunity of catching a "Natural Tiger" would be reward enough for me. In the U.S. they stock lab created Tigers in resevoirs where panfish like bluegills have taken over. It gives the local sportfishing population an aggressive, fast growing predator to angle after. Once the lifecycle of the most recently stocked Tigers nears it's end, they can introduce largemouth and spotted bass to the lake. Gives the bass a fighting chance against large numbers of Bluegill.

Since Balsam is the highest lake in the chain, water flows out in both directions. Has anyone caught any pike in Cameron lake or Sturgeon yet?

[Rizzo]

scary. I had heard rumours of pike in Balsam a few years ago but now we're seeing lots of proof. Think I'll go there Saturday and try to pull a few out!

[mbac31]

I have personally caught almost 30 there so far this year. I caught this one recently. I keep them for my Dad, he loves them. I personally dont let any go. The Ministry have known about these for a while now and have done little about them. My biggest so far this year is 42 1/2". I pretty much have mapped where the buggers are congregating right now. 3 weeks ago I got 9 pike in one day. All were terminated. I dont have pics of all of them but here are some from Balsam so far this year.

 

 

 

Good luck keeping them out of there. Balsam is soon going the way of Dalrymple for certain.

[yo_guy]

Perhaps the limit for Pike should be set at unlimited?

[Baptiste]

About 10 years ago people started to catch the occasional pike on Baptiste and Elephant Lakes which were previously pike free. The cottagers' assoc. are in the middle of a Walleye revival campaign and the the Musky, wally, LM and SM are still out there but it's not uncommon to catch pike all day where the others used to be. The hammer handles are becoming trophies.

[Jer]

The Ministry have known about these for a while now and have done little about them.

 

 

What would you have them do?

[Musky or Specks]

What would you have them do?

Hes right short of poisoning the entire fishery community of the lake and starting over nothing can be done about invasive species. Thats why it is such a problem.

[mbac31]

What would you have them do?

 

How about letting guys keep them all. That would be a start. I'm not talking about the guys on the beat. 'm talking about these guys who run it. To soon we will have the Pike in most lakes. Look at Algonquin, they are keeping them out of there for now. I have a cottage near Baptiste lake and Elephant. The lakes are full of Pike that only a few short years ago were sm all. I'm now catching 40 Plus inchers. We have a Government agency that we pay to do a job. How about getting to the point and voicing our oponions to them properly. We all pay for this resource. Why not get what we pay for. Limits, seasons, invasive species, etc. Canada is to dam slack in their it will be ok attitude. Give it a couple of years, they will be in Scugog and Rice. Then good luck with your "What would you have them do attitude". How about take some of the mon ey we spend in the industry and just do something. This is getting discusting. Problem is they dont have to manage the waters when there are pike in there. They are getting lazier.

[Jonny]

So am I understanding this correctly? The MNR is saying you should kill all the pike you catch but you can't keep over your limit? Does that mean a knife through the backbone and let them sink to the bottom if you're over your limit, or if you don't want to keep pike to eat?

 

Lake Nipissing now has a large number of smelts, where before I believe there were none. I'm not sure much can be done about that either. So we get out our smelt nets during the run and make the best of it. There are getting to be so many that I am sure they will change the balance of our lake.