THE PIKE. 



Esox Lucius Esocidce. 



BY W. DAVID TOMLIN. 



" The Pike belongs to the family of the Esocklte. Body elongated, sub-cylin- 

 drical, with small scales, margin of upper jaw formed by intermaxillaries and 

 maxillaries laterally; mouth very large, jaws elongate, depressed; teeth strong, 

 h-oked, unequal on intermaxillaries, vomer and palaticmes; dorsal short, opposite 

 anal; gill-openings wide; air bladder present; voracious fish of the fresh waters of 

 the northern regions. Genus one; species, six or seven." Jordan. 



THE Pike' family are familiar objects to any person whose 

 habits lead him to frequent the banks of sharp-running 

 rivers or cold clear lakes, but especially to the boy who 

 goes a-fishing. To distinguish between the branches of the 

 family, however, the boy must either lay them side by side, or 

 if he be taking object-lessons in free-hand drawing, let him 

 sketch a Pike, and then continue his studies; there will 

 remain an impress on his brain that years of business cares 

 will not efface. Whenever in after years the strong, promi- 

 nent features of a northern Pike are introduced to him he 

 recognizes the friend of his boyhood days. The Pike to him 

 remains a Pike forever. 



What is a Pike? 



Ichthyological: A fish of the genus Esox, named for its 

 length, and shape or form of its snout. It is distinguished 

 by its projecting lower jaw and its full, prominent eyes. 



Its head and back are a dark green, shading nearly to 

 black graduating to a pearly white on the belly; the belly 

 fins, four of them, are green, tinging to pinkish hue around 



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