Northern Pike

Esox lucius

Very common & widespread carnivorous fish across Britain & Ireland.

The flank is marked with short, light bar-like spots and a few to many dark spots on the fins.

Sometimes, the fins are reddish.

Younger Pikes have yellow stripes along a green body; later, the stripes divide into light spots and the body turns from green to olive green.

The lower half of the gill cover lacks scales, and it has large sensory pores on its head and on the underside of its lower jaw which are part of the lateral line system.

Unlike the similar-looking and closely related muskellunge, the Northern Pike has light markings on a dark body background and fewer than six sensory pores on the underside of each side of the lower jaw.