View Full Version : the dying pike
sitting_buddah
15-01-2009, 20:47
whats happened to all the pike in our river systems and in some cases the lakes, i have never known such dissapointing days pike fishing, i recall no more than 4 years ago if you went for a mornings pike angling in the winter, between you and your pals you'd bag a couple at least.. this just is not the case anymore. whats to blame and is this a nationwide thing ? i have my views on whats the cause of what is undoubtly dark times for the freshwater croc. views ?????
Buddah
Hello mate,
Not 'bigging' myself here, I've had loads of pike this year from the main river Thames, both on livies and big plastics. Nothing huge though, yet.....
Ian
curly_wull
15-01-2009, 22:43
The pike in the little river I fish are neither as big or as numerous as they were but like anywhere else they can be caught if you work the water out.
Plenty of them in the Thames where I have been fishing this winter. On average getting 3-5 fish in short 4 hour sessions.
Lidl stores may have something to do with it with their cheap spinning outfits for sale and the purchasers piking year-round and having a free dinner.:norty:
Lidl stores may have something to do with it with their cheap spinning outfits for sale and the purchasers piking year-round and having a free dinner.:norty:
What like these guys? http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=gYt0tHRWO-g
RobThomo
16-01-2009, 08:02
Lidl stores may have something to do with it with their cheap spinning outfits for sale and the purchasers piking year-round and having a free dinner.:norty:
Without a doubt that is going to have an affect on some waters
Over xmas I did a bit of wandering with a lure rod down the local canal, bumped into an old bloke down there (non fisherman) and got chatting, he said I was the first Brit he'd seen down there for ages and asked what I was fishing for, pike and perch "ah, thats what the Eastern Europeans fish for, good eating apparently" :brick:
Still doing ok on the rivers. I always get excited when I read about big match weights of roach as the pike are never far away.
I agree with you about the lakes. Many pits that produced thirties back in the eighties are no longer worth the effort - too many pike- all very skinny and not enough fodder fish. Most people blame the cormorants - I've had 8 so far this winter. All picked up big deadbaits off the bottom. I had 3 in 24 hours on K1. I think the other problem is the pike are just breeding like rabbits and outstripping what little food is left.
MONTY PYTHON
16-01-2009, 08:45
The pike fishing in a canal near me has always been some of the best in Yorkshire. But over the last few years stokes do seem to be on the decline and the fish that are caught are at best 12 15lb. nothing like the size of some fish caught 10years ago:confused: . Also in some smaller match ponds I do believe pike are been removed to help increase stocks of silver fish... :nono2:
help sustain a natural balance.:thumbs:
The EE's have been catcing plenty out of the Thames, cos thats where they get told to go once they have been thrown off any private lake around the M25. I fish the Ebro nr Tortosa, and they are at it out there!! Foul hooking mullet with spinners, dead lining for cats etc! I discovered a camp set up on one of the islands out there, and the had smokers there ready for what they had caught... Their culture I guess, catch ,cook and eat.Introduce that culture to our River/Lake system, and after ten years stocks will start to deplete... Deport them I say!!! :rolleyes:
Kevin
W2 Bailiff
CrazyHorse
16-01-2009, 13:05
Still doing ok on the rivers. I always get excited when I read about big match weights of roach as the pike are never far away.
I agree with you about the lakes. Many pits that produced thirties back in the eighties are no longer worth the effort - too many pike- all very skinny and not enough fodder fish. Most people blame the cormorants - I've had 8 so far this winter. All picked up big deadbaits off the bottom. I had 3 in 24 hours on K1. I think the other problem is the pike are just breeding like rabbits and outstripping what little food is left.
I believe it's now due to more and more lakes and rivers which have specimen fish as the predominant species and in large numbers. It seem that if large carp, barbel etc. are the predominant species, these will then push out the smaller silver fish species, all competing in the food chain. If there is a lack of these smaller silver fish species, the pike will not grow to a large size due to lack of food.
When the north part of CEMEX Papercourt opened up for fishing, pike to 34lb were caught, reason, large amount of small silver fish, but now carp are the predominant species, these have pushed out the smaller silver fish and subsequently the pike, mid double size pike can still be caught, but the pike fishing is definitely nowhere like it used to be on PC. Also the tench population seems to have suffered and Papercourt used to be one of the most prolific tench fisheries in the country.
It definitely seems that pike fishing is in decline and you certainly have to choose venues carefully, i.e. where small silver fish are the predominant species (watch match reports) or venues that are stocked with trout etc.
FAIRFORD
16-01-2009, 20:07
What like these guys? http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=gYt0tHRWO-g
They must be serious,they've got a rucksack AND a landing net!
Normally all their tackle is in a carrier bag.Seen plenty on the Thames Promenade in Reading,and that's hard going now.
The video is on the Kennet,where it goes under the A33 relief road.
Probably filmed in April or May LOL
.
BuggedByTench
17-01-2009, 23:43
What like these guys? http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=gYt0tHRWO-g
Did anyone note the worried expression and guilty look over the shoulder when the siren is heard at the end of the video? :nono2: you know you shouldn't be there!
xdantempx
18-01-2009, 12:26
see alot of idiot pike anglers to many of em just let em swallow the rig or fish well over depthif you snapp off on a pike its pretty mush dead...and the rivers are getting fuller with idiots who have no idea
Bazz from Nottingham
18-01-2009, 21:51
I fish for Pike (clue, look at avatar) & i dont see so many Pikers these days, good from my point of view. Had a double just before Xmas from a Notts Pit.
Not going to talk about foreign nationals killing & eating them, too much trouble on other forums regarding this. I bet they will kill & eat Carp too..food for thought..;)
The_Saint
19-01-2009, 10:08
i have been pike fishing for over 20 years and have noticed my catch rates fall along with a noticable lack of upper doubles and twenties. What i have noticed is an increase of pike with dodgy eyes (parcites?). Many of my fish have a blind eye, which may effect their hunting etc? My mate has also said he has noticed an increase in pike which are blind in one eye.
the decline in pike fishing on the waters I fish cannot be attributed to people catching and eating them. Decline of silver fish is the reason. And there is one cause for this (on the waters I fish) and that's the cormarant.
still catching plenty, but the average size seems to be on the decline
The carp lake im on this season has shed loads of pike going up to high doubles.
I've had 6 or 7 in a day up to mid doubles but the thing is there are no silver fish in there at all no tench,bream,roach nothing just pike and carp.
Now i think this cant be right for poor old mister pike as all he has to eat is pike but there are plenty in there so they dont seem to mind but for me i think its bad management (not a cemex water).
I have done a few sessions on the lea/stort and had some jacks from the same places i caught jacks 30 years ago and know of a few 20s that have been out so maybe its just a case of trying harder as they are there.Wether they are there in numbers i dont know.
curly_wull
22-01-2009, 09:44
Pike are survivors and if there are no silvers to tuck into they will move on to waterbirds, boiliees and even each other. This is not necessarily a bad thing as cannibal pike grow big...really big !
DAFFYD THOMAS
22-01-2009, 09:46
Me & a pal have fished for pike on a 30 odd acre lake (very famous for it's mahoosive carp ;) ) over the last 5 or 6 years or so. The catch rates have been superb with 20 odd fish to 20lb last winter between us in a morning session not unheard of. This winter the pike fishing has been awful :bonk:
One fish in total over 5 or 6 sessions. Now admittedly we were very spoilt but they just seem to have vanished!! There are no silver fish at all but then again there hasn't been for years. Back in the summer very few carp anglers moaned re: pike taking their lines out, whereas in previous years they had problems galore with the pike causing problems..........We can't work it out!!:confused: :brick:
They don't like too much pressure, they will usually move out away from the banks during the day and then venture back at night... I fished K1 early 90's and caught some good pike, after 30 or so sessions catches started to dwindle... dropped runs etc. Pike 'thrive on neglect' remember!!
W2 gets bashed every season, massive water that it is,they are still in there but you have to move about to get good fish.
Kevin
W2 Bailiff
Pike certainly do thrive on neglect, but they need fodder fish as well and that is the problem at the moment.
Last season I splashed out on a gold card and was looking forward to some great piking as most of the syndicate waters are fished exclusively by carp anglers. I didn't see another pike angler all winter on the Car Park Lake, Rockford or the Roach Pit. All the pike I caught were very thin and there was a 16 pounder on the car park lake I had 4 times in one weekend. It had the length of a mid 20 and the poor thing was obviously starving. When I fished this water in the late 80s it was great - not many pike but every other fish was a 20 and they were in great condition. Now it is full of skinny jacks and low doubles.
These days most of the paying punters want big carp, which are no use as pike fodder. Us pikers are a minority, but you only need to go to places like Chew, which always sells out, to see that pike anglers will pay for good sport.
Brownie73
27-03-2009, 08:25
I have fished the local rivers for over 20 years and have caught some great pike but in the last five years there has been a marked decline in the catches, there was a swim which was a 2mile walk into a forest which i have been to and seen pike actually rolling on the surface and i had 9 pike out in about 2hrs on lures I went on the last day of the season just to get a run and there were 6 men there all with spinning rods and couldnt speak a word of english dont think i will bother with that swim again:mad:
niknak8888
03-04-2009, 18:02
hmmm that dont sound suspicious... spotted 2 of the cheeky buggars on my local river blatantly in the closed season around march 20th. would have stopped and given them a word if i could... really hacked me off
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