Fish-Hawk.Net

I was up in the Marten River area earlier on in June with Rescue78 fishing for Walleye. We had some great results, however we did catch several Walleye that were darker in colour. I would have to say that indeed there was a bluish hue to them. I thought that since we were in a river system, could these possibly have been Sauger..........but the local guide we were with insisted these were "Blue Pickerel". My question to you lads.........Is "Blue Pickerel" really just a Sauger, or is there in fact a species of fish "Blue Pickerel"????

Never got one myself,But:Yes they do exist Blue pike were introduced to the great lakes many years ago and almost close to eraticated by commercial fishing.They are not common but indeed they do exsist Very hard to come by and I really hope you got a pic
Because they r very scarce and to find one is a true trophy,released of course Yes sauger will take the blueish hinge but the blue pickeral is for sure a real fish!

T.L F.F Pics if you have any????

Actually.......I would say that over the 3 days we were fishing up there, we caught maybe 3-4 between a group of 8. I didn't realize they were so rare.........and guess what......no pics.

Just to land one is a feat on its own!!!WTG on your catches guys If you happen to return try for a pic to show all on here who have never seen one

T.L F.F

Ive caught one blue Pickeral....it was only 8" long but I do have pic of it some where ...i'll find it and post it...got it on the Ottawa in the Wendover area

Question for you guys. Are blue pike really that rare? The other day I was out in Appleton with averageangler002 and he landed a pike with a blue hue. Neither of us had heard of a blue pike before so we consulted his twin brother who you guys would know as bassstalker. He told us pretty much what FF said. I had no idea that such a fish existed. Guess you learn something new everyday. Big-O would know the spot. It's right off the launch where you were sayin you had a little boat trouble the other day.(kill switch) I actually met you later that day. I was with Bassstalker and his twin. I'm surprised no one caught one out there that day. Although all that thunder and lightning might have persuaded them not to bite. Anyways, pretty interesting stuff. Hope to see ya'll on the water. Goodluck and great fishin, especially team 4

To add on what Killer said,
it is a pike that is purpil it isnt a walleye! Looks like a rainbow trout...but on a Northerns body! I have pics of it. Is this natural or some strange abnormal Pike?
Cheers'
-AA-

Blue pike appear to be a flavour of walleye ...

See

http://www.nativefish.org/BluePike/index.html
http://niagarariveranglers.com/blue_pike.htm
http://www.walleyecentral.com/blue_pike.shtml
http://www.nativefish.org/Articles/bluepike2.htm


but i also have seen blueish northern pike. I suspect the northerns are just a colour variation due to water colour etc. The blue "walleye" appear to be a separate species...

I have caught numerous walleye with a prominent bluish hue in Quebec lakes. Indeed, the inside of my cooler has been coloured blue on many occasions. As a consequence, last month I wrote the Société de la faune et des parcs Quebec regarding the existence of blue walleye. Their response is copied below:

Hi Sir,

There is a lot of lakes in the region where we do find some "Blue Walleye" , a couple of years ago we had some DNA analysis from a sample of some yellow and blue walleye from lake White Pine in the Restigo zec. The results show no genetic difference between the two colourations. I have included an article relating that Blue Pike and Yellow Walleye are the same fish.

The article

Catch this: Walleye, blue pike the same fish 07/19/03 Bill Sloat Plain Dealer Reporter

Cincinnati - After laboriously examining DNA from a dozen blue pike specimens stored in museums, federal researchers are prepared to report next week that they cannot detect genetic differences between those fish and the walleye swimming in Lake Erie today. In effect, the finding means that the lake's legendary blue pike were probably nothing more than modern walleyes of a different color. People used to catch blue pike by the garbage-can-full, and the fish were famed for succulent meals. But by the 1960s nobody could catch them anymore. Now the government-run DNA tests show there was probably no such thing as a true blue.

A summary of the lab report obtained by The Plain Dealer says that "analyses of each gene region separately suggest little, if any, genetic differentiation exists between individuals of suspect blue pike and walleye." It adds that "these data suggest that the blue pike is not a distinct evolutionary unit from walleye." The report will be formally presented Monday in Madison, Wis., when experts from 30 nations gather to discuss the status of fish in the Great Lakes.

A goal of the meeting is to identify priority areas for research on yellow perch and walleye, whose numbers may be declining, while measuring the impacts of invaders such as round goby and ruffe, whose numbers are increasing. Some scientists and sportsmen's groups hoped that blue pike could be found and restored in the lake. The U.S. study was aimed at aiding management decisions if the fish were rediscovered. Those hopes would appear to be damaged, since, as yet, there is no evidence that blue pike are genetically different from walleye.

The comparisons involved a dozen blue pike specimens. The specimens come from Ohio State University and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's vast collection of native North American animals that were caught between 1940 and 1952, and scores of freshly caught walleyes. The researchers were surprised not to find significant differences when two mitochondrial DNA genes from blue pike and walleye were sequenced and compared, said Cheryl Morrison, the geneticist at the U.S. Geological Survey's aquatic biology laboratory in West Virginia who will present the report. A third DNA region known as S7 also was examined, Morrison said yesterday in a telephone interview. "We didn't see anything different," Morrison said. "Some people just won't like this answer. They would prefer that it is a distinct subspecies that could somehow be brought back."

Carol Stepien, an aquatic biologist who heads the Great Lakes Environmental Genetics Laboratory at Cleveland State University, said yesterday that she has been conducting similar research on specimens from other museums, including the Cleveland Museum of Natural History, and her results seem to match what the government scientists found.

"Although I haven't finished analyzing my data, what I've found is that the museum specimens are still within the normal realm of walleye. There are all kinds of different colors of walleye, but they're no different. I just haven't seen any important differences genetically between blue pike and walleye," Stepien said in a telephone interview.

In the late 1990s, Stepien found that blue-colored walleye caught recently in Canadian lakes had the same DNA as Lake Erie walleye. That meant the Canadian fish weren't true blues, either. "I'm not sure there is such a thing as a true blue pike," Stepien said. "I would say it's more like a color that you got in deeper areas of the lake that occurred naturally. It's like having a brown puppy or a white puppy or a yellow puppy. All the puppies are the same except for the color."

Blue pike once were one of the most plentiful and popular food fishes, flourishing in the deepest waters of Lake Erie, the Niagara River and Lake Ontario. Commercial fishermen caught more than 3 million pounds in 1885, old records show. Between 1950 and 1957, the annual take rose to 26 million pounds. Less than 200 pounds went to market in 1964. Eventually, the United States and Canada each declared the blue pike extinct. Old reports show that walleye caught today were called "yellow pike." The deeper-water fish was the "blue pike." It wasn't until 1926 that scientists formally declared they were different.

Gary Isbell, who heads Ohio's fisheries research and management programs, said it's time for anglers and scientists to give up the quest for a blue pike. "We've got serious issues on Lake Erie with other species," Isbell said. "The blue pike are gone. It's time to get over it."

Also, some more info here: http://www.fishontario.com/articles/blue-walleye/

When I was a kid growing up I use to ice fish almost everyday down on Jordan Harbour/Lake Ontario and use to catch blue perch. I caught a few of them and thought that was very interesting as I also heard about the pike and walleye being blue sometimes.

The blue Pike I caught...this web site JSDX gave up is offering $500.00 for a pic of the fish! I wonder if they will pay out!!!lol. Anyways, I will post the pic ASAP so I can get more feed back on this pike! Iguess thats the ONLY trophy fish i have caught!!!!!!
Cheers'
-AA-

Many years ago while canoeing the Steel River system in northern Ontario we caught many walleye which were colored "blue". We also caught ones which were "yellow". The fought the same and tasted the same. A simple color variation of the same species.

Yes indeed, have seen a few of them over the years. Much like Tomcat has already stated, I've seen them only in Quebec myself.

Have a friend with a hunt camp in northern Quebec, pretty plentiful there.

Didn't notice any real taste difference either! Although he swears there is

Geee

Never realized they where such a big deal when Waldonator and I caught them

We'll probably never catch on again now

Ho well