THE BRITISH ANGLER'S LEXICON. 173 



well on the feed. Let the tackle be strong, the rod short 

 .and stiff, and don't give much time before landing the fish, 

 as making much disturbance where a shoal is, sometimes 

 puts a stop to the sport, as perch are very wary. 



Pike (Esox).& fish found over all Europe, and very 

 .abundant in the rivers, lakes, and ponds of the British Isles. 

 It has rather a largish body, covered with scales of a strong 

 texture, with a broad, flat muzzle, and very large mouth, 

 furnished extensively with teeth of various sizes. The 

 colour of the upper part of the body is olive brown, 

 becoming lighter, and mottled with green and yellow on the 

 sides, and passing into silvery white on the belly. The 

 pike grows to a very large size. Specimens have been 

 -caught in lakes in Ireland weighing over seventy pounds. 

 It is an exceedingly voracious fish, and has been in conse-. 



THE PIKE. 



quence called the fresh water shark. It is capable of 

 digesting almost anything it can swallow. The pike will 

 attack any fish, even if of superior size, and greedily devours 

 all smaller. Frogs are favourite morsels, and it will devour 

 water rats, young ducks, and even young geese become its 

 prey. It soon depopulates a trout river, and an incessant 

 war is waged against it by all lovers of the gentle art. It 

 spawns in the early spring, and is best in season in the late 

 autumn. The flesh is considered good by many. 



Pike Fishing? may be carried on in various ways. 

 This fish is so greedy that almost any sort of bait will e.itice 



