NATURAL HISTORY, TORONTO REGION 
of two feet and a weight of eight pounds, but those I 
have seen were never more than half that size. As 
a food fish it is not generally appreciated, for its 
flesh seems to have absorbed too strong a flavour of 
the weeds among which it lives. 
32. Common Pike. Northern Pike. Lucius lu- 
cius (Linnaeus).—Common and generally distrib- 
uted in all waters where there are sufficient weeds to 
afford it shelter. The Pike is one of the most vora- 
cious of our fishes, feeding upon any form of animal 
life which it is able to overpower. Under favourable 
circumstances it attains a large size, but in Toronto 
waters it is so constantly pursued that it does not 
get a chance to attain its full dimensions, and Pike 
of over ten pounds weight are becoming very rare. 
Spawning takes place in early spring, as soon as the 
ice breaks up; the fish running up on to rush beds 
or grassy shallows for that purpose. The females 
are very prolific; one weighing thirty-two pounds was 
estimated by the late Professor Buckland to contain 
595,000 ova. Many anglers profess to look upon 
the Pike with contempt, and treat its claim to be con- 
sidered a game fish with derision. This is because 
it is usually taken by them in the summer months, 
when it is not in good condition. It is then soft in 
flesh and weedy in flavour; but in the autumn, after 
the weeds have died down, it is a different fish; then 
its flesh is firm and good, and its fighting powers 
will tax the angler’s skill to the utmost. 
264 
