I caught it last week in Northwest Ontario.

in minnesota they (DNR) declassified it as a species and considers it just a color strain. but it does have a silver look with a blue/purple hue towards the head/cheecks

Yes...but some claim it to just be a color phase. I don't adhere to this claim otherwise I would think all pike would go through this from time to time...???

Hard to tell from the pic. You can catch them in Snowbank Lake.

This one is a bit larger but a good read.

quote Doughboy12: "Yes...but some claim it to just be a color phase. I don't adhere to this claim otherwise I would think all pike would go through this from time to time...???"

not necessarily many animals or fish maybe a color phase may mean just a recessive gene combination like black squirrels and gray and gray genetic makeup is dominant condition usually, and also environmental conditions can make fish show a different outer color.
Look at walleye in a bog stained lake,they are usually very yellow on the bottom.

quote Pinetree: "

quote Doughboy12: "Yes...but some claim it to just be a color phase. I don't adhere to this claim otherwise I would think all pike would go through this from time to time...???"

not necessarily many animals or fish maybe a color phase may mean just a recessive gene combination like black squirrels and gray and gray genetic makeup is dominant condition usually, and also environmental conditions can make fish show a different outer color.
Look at walleye in a bog stained lake,they are usually very yellow on the bottom."

I meant I don't think it is a "phase" not that I don't believe it is a color variation...which I do.

quote tyh: "
I caught it last week in Northwest Ontario. "

Yup...that is a silver phase pike.

Magic

quote MagicStik: "

quote tyh: "
I caught it last week in Northwest Ontario. "

Yup...that is a silver phase pike.


Magic"

+1

quote MagicStik: " "

Starving salmon

Phase:
1. Any of the major appearances or aspects in which a thing of varying modes or conditions manifests itself to the eye or mind.
2. A stage in a process of change or development.

So the term phase implies changing...which I take it these don't do. They are either a silver or aren't. They don't go through a cycle from silver to standard. The color variation makes way more sense to me which also means that calling it a phase is incorrect.

It's a big shiner

A short browsing of the Internet revealed that some authors call the silver pike a variant, a mutation, a strain, and, in one case, a separate species.
The name Esox goes back to Pliny who also described hops. That reminds me, I haven't had today's beer yet. Perhaps a sour beer....bye.

quote Doughboy12: "Phase:
1. Any of the major appearances or aspects in which a thing of varying modes or conditions manifests itself to the eye or mind.
2. A stage in a process of change or development.


So the term phase implies changing...which I take it these don't do. They are either a silver or aren't. They don't go through a cycle from silver to standard. The color variation makes way more sense to me which also means that calling it a phase is incorrect."

Notwithstanding Mr. Webster's interpretation of the word "phase", it is used correctly in describing the silver pike. In fact, the two words "color phase" have the meaning that is applied in a biological sense:

color phase
noun
Definition of COLOR PHASE
1: a seasonally variant pelage color
2 a : a genetic variant manifested by the occurrence of a skin or pelage color unlike the wild type of the animal group in which it appears
b : an individual marked by such a variant

Merriam-Webster link

Definition 2 is the more commonly used definition applied by biologists.

Examples of color phases in animals is more common than one might think. Many hawks have light or dark color phases. Anyone who hunts ruffed grouse has seen the red phase or gray phase individuals. Leopard frogs have a green phase and a brown phase. Wolves have a gray phase and a black phase. These are all examples of a fixed color attributed to a genetic trait.

However, one can also use the term to denote a seasonal change in color in an individual (definition 1). We have all seen white snowshoe hares in the winter and gray hares in the summer. The same thing happens with arctic foxes and ptarmigans.

Who cares? We all know what it meant from the original post.. Useless argument. Is Koda back?

quote warhawk: "Who cares? We all know what it means. Useless argument. Is Koda back?"

Please grant a bit of indulgence for those of us who care about accuracy in our field of study. You would certainly not appreciate such a dismissive response to one of your poetry posts. I, for one, would rise to your defense if there were such a post.

I understand your point and it is well taken. It just seems that an argument was being made where there didn't need to be one. I should have let it lay. Peace out.

quote thebotanyguy: "

quote warhawk: "Who cares? We all know what it means. Useless argument. Is Koda back?"

Please grant a bit of indulgence for those of us who care about accuracy in our field of study. You would certainly not appreciate such a dismissive response to one of your poetry posts. I, for one, would rise to your defense if there were such a post."

Yes....and thank you...and I mean it.

quote Jeriatric: "

quote MagicStik: " "

Starving salmon"

Since nobody else said it I will....WINNER! lol

This was an interesting thread with a good discussion going on. Sure didn't seem like an argument to me. Go figure.

I hadn't heard of the silver pike.

A bit off-topic, but has anyone here ever caught a grass, chain, or redfin pickerel?

quote Moss Tent: "A bit off-topic, but has anyone here ever caught a grass, chain, or redfin pickerel?"

Not in Minnesota,at least they not suppose to be here.

quote warhawk: "Who cares? We all know what it meant from the original post.. Useless argument. Is Koda back?"

Kind of a low blow to equate thebotanyguy with Koda.

quote Pinetree: "

quote Moss Tent: "A bit off-topic, but has anyone here ever caught a grass, chain, or redfin pickerel?"

Not in Minnesota,at least they not suppose to be here."

I've caught chain pickerel up to four pounds here in Tennessee.

Just to clarify I wasn't referring to botanyguy. And I I let it go. Enjoy the discussion.

I think it's a chicken hawk

quote Pinetree: "

quote Moss Tent: "A bit off-topic, but has anyone here ever caught a grass, chain, or redfin pickerel?"

Not in Minnesota,at least they not suppose to be here."

WI has native Grass Pickerel, including in the Mississippi River - though they are rare in WI outside a few scattered populations (mostly the WI River). It is possible MN MIGHT have small numbers of Grassies in the backwaters at the extreme SE corner of the state. This has never been verified but Grassies habits mean they can be overlooked. At best they are rare and barely present.

Next week I'm headed south, should be spending part of a day targeting Chains - which I'm excited about as I've never caught one.

And those silver colored Pike are cool looking!

Now lets get side tracked by blue walleye (blue pike).

Everything aside. Did it taste good.

Oops ....or not