Habitat utilisation by pike Esox lucius L. during winter floods in a southern English chalk river

Seven pike Esox lucius L., implanted with radio-transmitters, were tracked throughout autumn and winter in the River Frome, a southern English chalk river. During the first flood events of the year, pike remained within the main river channel but during subsequent flood events, pike could also be found in flooded fields, in drainage ditches or in a millstream. Eighty percent of the fixes over flooded land occurred within 10 m of the riverbank, although distances of up to 89 m from the bank were recorded. In ditches, pike could be found over 250 m from the main river. For pike in ditches and flooded fields, distance from the main river channel was positively correlated with discharge. There was individual variation amongst pike for the habitat types selected, with some pike utilising flooded field or ditch habitat more often than others. The proportion of time spent out of the main river channel does not appear to be related to the size of the pike. It is hypothesised that pike are leaving the main river channel to exploit feeding opportunities in the flooded fields and drainage ditches, rather than using these areas as refugia from high flow conditions

Efficiency of Northern pike ( Esox lucius

Abstract Stocking and electrofishing occurrence and abundance data for northern pike Esox lucius L. in \textgreater3800 km of French rivers across 7 years were compared to assess the effect of recreational fisheries stocking programmes on wild pike populations. A positive relationship was found between the additive effect of stocking and the size of the stocked pike. However, the stocking programmes implemented in France by recreational fishery managers from 2008 to 2013 increased the probability of pike occurring in the river network, without increasing abundance in well-established pike populations, because pike stocked in their early-life stages were used in most of the stocking programmes