MUSKY, PIKE OR PICKEREL? 



If there is any one point in the fishing game that 

 causes more discussion than the true identification of 

 the muskellunge, pike and pickerel, I have failed to 

 notice it. All three of these savages of the waters 

 belong to the pike family, from the big, husky musky 

 down to the more slender and smaller pickerel, and 

 they have a reputation for greediness and voracity 

 that entitles them to be called the " wolf " of the 

 waters. They devour every living creature that 

 comes in sight and prey upon the other fishes, as well 

 as taking an occasional feed from their own kind. 



A FAMILY OF ROUGHNECKS 



The family resemblance between the musky, pike 

 and pickerel is close in contour and general appear- 

 ance, but in markings and color, as well as weight 

 and size, there is quite a difference. The body is 

 similar in shape, with the exception that the musky 

 is built more bulky and chunky than either the pike 

 or pickerel, the latter being the slimmest and more 

 slender of the three. They have the same number 

 and kind of fins and they are placed in the same 

 position on each. The same large head, with its 

 flattened appearance and the protruding underjaw 

 armed with an array of sharp daggerlike teeth, 



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