What kind of fish?

[larrym]

I posted this on the Muskie Board but it took me several days to figure out how to get a picture into the photo page. On a recent trip to Gullrock my wife caught an approximately 30" fish that was shaped like a Northern or Muskie but was all silver with a blue hue to it. To see a picture go to the photo page, touch members only section and do a seasrch for larrym. Anyone know what this is? Someone on the Muskie site, without seeing the picture, suggested a blue pike, although I've never heard of one.

http://www.walleyecentral.com/photopost/showphoto.php?photo=2336

Larry,
I copy/pasted your link here, so they don't have to go look for it.
I can't tell you what kind of fish it is...sorry.

Juls

[SenecaBow]

It looks like a musky. Very odd colour.

About the blue pike http://www.nativefish.org/bluepike/

[work2fish]

Well, that is a weird fish. The mouth looks like a pike/musky to me but the fins don't look like a musky's (especially the fin on bottom near the tail) or a blue pike (missing dorsal)...

[Ben Conners]

That is a wierd fish. Wonder if it is a Hybrid of some sort. Come on WC guys lets find somebody who can tell us what this is.

[larrym]

Thanks Juls, I tried to do that but couldn't make it work. Must have had something slightly off in my address. 65 years old and born a little late to understand all of this computer stuff.

[larrym]

In the way of additional observations, we stopped in Little Falls, Minnesota, on our way back home and visited an interesting fishing museum they have there. They had mounted fish of all kinds, including a Silver Muskie.(I had never heard of one before) Unlike the Tiger Muskie we all know this mounting was more silver and the stripes and spots were much more muted, thus making it different than the Tiger. It was, however, not as silver or void of markings as the fish we had caught.

The other thing we noticed when we caught the fish was the excessive amount of dark yellow slim it left in the net and on the gunwhale of the boat.....much more than any Muskie or Northern we have ever landed.

[pikemike]

looks like a gullrock pike to me. i'd suggest emailing that pic to the MNR or even the DNR for further ID, but i have caught similar and the Officer counted them against my pike limit. just like a walleye, the scale tone will change throughout the course of a given year based on environmental factors (water clarity, temp, oxygen level, genetics, ect.) i bet you caught this guy in shallow water?

[unlogged larrym]

Actually caught it in 28' of water while trolling spinners for Walleye (along the boot if your familiar with Gullrock). My wife caught it and I hooked a Northern of the same size at the same time. I intend to contact the DNR but expected I would get the answer from WC....didn't realize it was that unusual, just knew I did not know what it was.

[unlogged larrym]

Pikemike, just noticed a post on the Muskie board from "Vice" saying it was a Northern born without the usual markings. Claimed to have seen it before but was rare. That may fit with your view and perhaps there are a few of these in Gullrock. Interesting!

[Unlogged T-Mac]

I think it is simply a pale colored Northern.
Look at the fins and the cheeks...looks like Northern to me.

When I guided on Winnibigoshsish (MN) I used to take folks out for northerns ...cane poling. (Only when I HAD to). Some parts of the lake had much lighter, more silvery colored Northerns...especially the SW side weeds.... between Judd's and the river. Maybe the water was more constantly stirred up from wind there or something?

I just figured they were trying to blend in.
But... they looked like that picture, at any rate.

[CNDFish]

I know that fish as a Blue Pike too.
There is a lake in Eastern Ontario that I grew up fishing with my Grandfather that you could get them in, but it was rare. He told me when he was a kid that only blue pike were in the lake, but Northerns eventually out competed the Blues.

Don't confuse this with the Blue Pike from Erie that was more of the walleye family. This is definetly an essox and distinct looking from both Jacks and Musky.

Shawn

[Muskiefool]

Saw an article years ago calling them Blue pike a few lakes in Iowa and a few in Mn have them from what I remember pretty rare fish

[Sask Can.]

As a guy in N. sask. Canada imho Pike, I see a Lot.

[Birdman11]

I live in Iowa. We catch these every so often. We call them a silver northern.

[Pooch]

Catch several a year north of Red Lake (Ontario). Usually don't get very large and always called them silver or blue northern. Actually a fairly pretty fish.

Pooch

[Pooch]

Catch several a year north of Red Lake (Ontario). Usually don't get very large and always called them silver or blue northern. Actually a fairly pretty fish.

Pooch

[rebelrn2001]

My guess is a northern too. Did you look to see how many spots/holes there were on the underside of the jaw? Thats really how to tell the difference. I don't remember which is which, numbers wise, for identifying them. I seem to have caught fish like that in the past, either on Wabigoon/Butler in Canada or on Winnie, maybe not as large and just threw them back thinking they were just a peculiar colored northern.

[rebelrn2001]

My guess is a northern too. Did you look to see how many spots/holes there were on the underside of the jaw? Thats really how to tell the difference. I don't remember which is which, numbers wise, for identifying them. I seem to have caught fish like that in the past, either on Wabigoon/Butler in Canada or on Winnie, maybe not as large and just threw them back thinking they were just a peculiar colored northern.

[grt1]

First off let me tell you there are no muskies in gullrock, the closest muskie lake is flat lake on the west of Red Lake.

Having lived on Gullrock for the past 15 years and fishing almost every day in the summer, I have caught several walley with a blue tinge to them and when I discussed this with the MNR biologist, I was told that the color comes from the environment the fish lives in.

That said, along the boot is a lot of deep water and I think this fish was passing through because the blue walleyes I have caught have all been down by the 3 sisters and fishermans point.

I would venture to guess this northern was out hunting for dinner and went away from the shallows to try its luck

[orchard frank]

We caught a similar fish in Lac Seul some years back, outfitter said some northerns are just that way, didn't know the reason why. Said he has seen or heard of them on occasion, but not unheard of, during his 50 yrs in NW Ontario.

[EYELLAW]

WE CATCH A FEW FISH EVERY YEAR ON LAKE ST.CLAIR THAT LOOK LIKE THE ONE YOU GOT THE DNR DOWN THERE TOLD US THEY WHERE NORTHERN PIKE THAT FOR ONE REASON OR THE OTHER DIDN'T HAVE THE PIGMENTION THAT THE OTHERS HAD BUT SOME OF THE OLD TIMERS AT THE DOCK SAY THEY ARE A DIFFERNT STRAIN OF PIKE ALL TOGETHER I TEND TO BELIVE THE DNR AS THERE IS NO RECORDS(STATE) HERE IN MICHIGAN THAT I CAN FIND

[Den]

It is a musky, it is what they call a Clear musky. i hope this helps. good luck and good fishin.
Den

[Pipestone Angler]

GRT1: Having fished Gullrock extensively for the past 15 years could you please enlighten me as to where you live? Only cabins I can think of would be just south of the claybanks, and where the Chukuni emptys into Keg. Or do you live at one of the five camps on Gullrock?