The mystery of the Douglass Beach fish is solved
“Early to bed, early to rise, fish all day, tell big lies” — Author unknown couple of weeks ago Rob Paterson and Joey Notargiovanni, both of TBL, separately came across the carcass of a large fish that had washed up on Douglass Beach and like modernday everyone took photos of the creature and posted on Facebook for everyone to talk about. Naturally, something a little out of the ordinary brought on many enthusiastic responses to, “What is this?”
To put things in perspective, Notargiovanni made sure to use his size 12 shoe against the large creature so that people would realize just how big it was. He estimates that it was about 3.5 feet long.
Some were in shock and horrified that such a creature could live in Brome Lake. Could it be Brome Lake’s Nessie? Or another Memphré? Some said it was a muskellunge (alias muskie), or was it a northern pike? Some people recalled a time in the 1960s when muskies were introduced to control other invasive species.
Michel Delorme, president of Renaissance Lac Brome (RLB) and longtime biologist responsible for the inventory of animals at Montreal’s Bio-dome (now retired) the prehistoric beast bearing many teeth that even in it’s after-life looked threatening, reports that it is in fact, a northern pike. He backed up his response by referring to research and publication of a book called “Poissons d’eau douce du Québec et des maritimes” by J.F. Desroches and University of Sherbrooke’s Isabelle Picard.
Delorme is delighted to add this to
Athe list of inventory of aquatic life in Brome Lake that was researched and led to a publication in 2013. RLB’S research serves as a realistic framework approach to protecting and conserving the lake and the wetlands surrounding it. Understanding what is there serves to help protect the animal diversity and vegetation that creates a balanced ecosystem.
The northern pike has an important role as a predator fish. It has a voracious appetite and snaps at bait and fish usually one-third its size. Some say that it has become the top predator in many fresh water lakes. The only predators known to the northern pike are sea lampreys and humans, but some biologists say that because they tend to hang out in water close to shore, they are likely catch for bears and other large animals.
Known to have a lifespan up to 12 years the northern pike can be identified by their bright yellow eyes and snouts filled with long, sharp teeth. Fishermen love the sport of catching pike but more often than not return them to the water they were caught because the boney nature of the beast does not make it the most desirable one to prepare for cooking. According to the Canadian Encyclopedia they can grow to a relatively large size with an average length about 40–55 centimetres (16–22 inches), with maximum recorded lengths of up to 150 centimetres (59 inches) and published weights of 28.4 kg (63 pounds).
Although the northern pike and muskie share the same habitat and appear very similar, their differences can be identified by a couple of factors. According to Richard Carignan, a contributor to “Outdoor Post,” of the two species, northern pike exhibit the least amount of colour variation with white or light yellow oval-shaped markings on a darker green background, whereas muskie display dark markings on a light background that may appear in the form of either spots or vertical bars. Variations of the muskie markings are greater than the northern pike.
Carignan says that other differences between the two types of fish relate to the paired fins on the lower body of a northern pike that are rounded in shape, as is the tail fin. These fins on muskie have more distinct points. Northern pike also have fully scaled cheek plates, while the cheeks of muskie are scaled only on the upper half. Another distinguishing feature can be seen on the underside of the lower jaw — northern pike have fewer than five pores on either side of the jaw, while muskie have six to nine.
Northern pike are common in the northern hemisphere. They can be found in streams and shallow water especially where it is weedy. Biologists say that they are remarkably quick in acceleration when striking their prey. They can also be found in clear, rocky waters. Known as a predatory fish, northern pike can be cannibalistic, especially when there is not enough food for them to prey on but they tend to feed on smaller fish.
Spawning pike choose shallow waters once the ice has left the lake.