|
Wednesday, December 06, 2006 |
|||||||||||
|
||||||||||||
|
Archives
Pike wreaking havoc on native trout Posted: Wednesday, Dec 06, 2006 - 01:13:12 pm PST By MIKE RICHESON Bigfork Eagle
A recent scientific report estimates that Northern Pike are consuming almost 7,000 westslope cutthroat trout and 3,000 bull trout every year in the upper Flathead River. Northern pike were illegally introduced into the Flathead River system in 1953. In the early 70s, pike were illegally introduced into the upper Flathead River drainage (above Kerr Dam) and became part of the sport fishery beginning in the 80s. Pike population peaked in the 80s along with record numbers of bull trout."Pike have ended up in these systems because they were spread illegally," Bruce Farling, executive director of Montana Trout Unlimited, said. "Bucket biologists stuck them in rivers and lakes and other places we didn't want them. The pike then escaped to other waters and then spread." The report - conducted by two University of Idaho professors and two Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks Fisheries employees - states that northern pike may be negatively impacting the native salmonid populations in the research area. The study area encompassed the Flathead River from the north end of Flathead Lake to the confluence of the Stillwater River, a 32-kilometer stretch. The migratory nature of the trout populations make them even more vulnerable to the pike as they travel from Flathead Lake into the river systems. During spring, juvenile bull and cutthroat trout emigrate from natal tributaries in the upper headwaters and arrive at Flathead Lake and the lower Flathead River by early fall. When they travel, they find the pike waiting for them. "The native fishery is hanging on by a thread," Farling said. "These pike are death on them. Pike tend to like these slew habitats and move in and out of them seasonally. This also happens to be a place where the migratory juvenile natives will forage for food and use for security. They go in there, and then they meet all these teeth." Bull trout are currently listed as a threatened species and the westslope cutthroat is on the petition for listing under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The report stated that consumption of juvenile bull trout and westslope cutthroat trout is of extreme importance to fisheries management because of ESA concerns and public pressure. "Reducing pike should be a priority," Farling said. "We're at the point now where additional hits [added to lake trout predation and habitat issues] will be pretty significant. If we don't take care of these native fish, we'll end up with a very simplistic fishery - pike and lake trout. We should not be managing pike as a legitimate sport fishery." Trout populations in Montana are unique due to their migratory nature. Flathead Lake was once a giant hub for feeding, migratory trout. "But we've squandered that is a real short amount of time," Farling said. Pike populations in the study area consistently ranged from 1,200 to 1,300 each year. Yet the pike consume nearly 260,000 fishes (7.9 metric tons), including trout, yellow perch, whitefish, minnows and suckers each year, which Farling said is alarming. "We should be managing pike to have a reduced impact," Farling said. "We want to preserve the heritage of northwest Montana. We're not saying that other fish aren't important, but this is the one place where we have these migratory populations that are an important heritage of this area. Right now, we are just letting pike and lake trout dictate things."
Comments
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||
