Physical feature: Standard length 35.4 in; standard weight 24.2 lb; flattened, elongate snout, scales on cheek and operculum. Long, cylindrical body with irregular yellow spots on a silvery green background that is lighter towards the belly. Stoutness of body varies depending on growing conditions, with better conditions resulting in deeper-bodied fish.
Habitat: Prefers cool lakes, ponds, and rivers with abundant amount of vegetation. Young and smaller adults like stay in the shallow areas with lots of vegetation, and proves protest from bigger pike from eating them. When the get bigger they move to deeper waters.
Behavior: Northern pike are independent fish, they can travel great distances to find food. They hover motionless over vegetation and wait for there prey to swim by.
Feeding and Diet: Northern pike wait in one spot for prey to swim by; feed on animals that worth the effect, they can eat fish that are almost the same size. Fry and juveniles feed on invertebrates until they can take fish. Fry and juveniles fall prey to large variety of animals like big invertebrates, frogs, birds and other fish. Adults fall prey to large fish eating birds, otters, bears, weasel, and recreational fishing.
Spawn: Spawning occurs in early spring. Males and females move close to shore or from streams to marshy areas. One female and a few smaller males swim into shallow vegetated areas. Females release a small number of eggs, which are immediately fertilized by attendant males. Egg release is repeated a varying number of times. Females may carry as many as 250,000 eggs. Both males and females may spawn with different mates during a spawning season. Adults do not guard spawning sites or provide care to the young.
Lures and Bait: Worms, minnows, top water lures, swim baits, spinners, spoons.
Smallmouth Bass
Physical feature: Two dorsal fins with spinous and soft-rayed portions united, body longer than deep, upper jaw doesn’t extend past eye, bronze streaks in cheek.
Habitat: Clear, rocky areas of lakes, reservoirs, and rivers with temperature from 68-70F
Behavior:
Feeding and Diet: Smallmouth larval feed on their yolk sacs, when they hatch. Once they are 1cm, they will feed on zooplankton. Adult smallmouth feed on crayfish, and minnows.
Spawn: Spawning activity begins in the spring when water temperatures reach 60 degrees F or more. The male builds a nest in quiet water, usually near shore, or downstream from an obstruction that causes a break in the current. Since the male will guard the eggs and the newly hatched fry, the nest is never far from deep water, or cover, where he can retreat when frightened. The eggs, which are larger than those of the largemouth bass, hatch in 2 to 3 days. Then the newly hatched light-colored fry drop down into the bottom of the gravel nest for three or more days..
Lures and Bait: live minnow, crayfish, worms, spinners, top water, divers, spoons, swim baits, plastic baits.
Largemouth Bass
Physical feature: Largemouth bass grow 4 to 6 inches (10 to 15 cm) during their first year, 8 to 12 inches (20 to 30 cm) in two years, 16 inches (40 cm) in three years. They are usually green with dark blotches that form a horizontal stripe along the middle of the fish on either side. The underside ranges in color from light green to almost white. They have a nearly divided dorsal fin with the anterior portion containing nine spines and the posterior portion containing 12 to 13 soft rays. Their upper jaw reaches far beyond the rear margin of the eye.
Habitat: Largemouth bass seek protective cover such as logs, rock ledges, vegetation, and man-made structures. They prefer clear quiet water, but will survive quite well in a variety of habitats.
Feeding and Diet: Bass vary in their eating habits throughout their lifetime. Young bass are indiscriminate feeders, eating almost anything they catch. Older bass, especially big inactive lunker bass, tend to prefer a specialized high-protein diet of golden shiners, shad, crawfish, and salamanders.
Spawn: Spawning area is located in shallow bays, backwaters, channels and other areas protected from the prevailing winds. They usually look for areas with firm bottoms of sand, gravel, mud or rock, and usually in water from 1 - 4 feet deep. But in some cases of very clear water they will be in deeper water.
Actual spawning takes place when the water temperature reaches between 63 - 58 degrees. The female will lay from 2000 to 7000 eggs per pound of her body weight. She will deposit her eggs in either one nest or can deposit them in several different nests, after which she leaves the area and returns to deeper water to recooperate. Once in the deeper water she will remain there for several weeks without eating.
Once the eggs are layed, the male guards the nest (or nests) and refuses to eat until the eggs hatch. But will pick up slowly moving objects and move them off the nest. And will attack fast moving objects near the nest.
Lures and Bait: spinnerbaits, spoons, topwater plugs, buzzbaits, crankbaits, jigs, as well as a whole range of soft plastics, Minnows and crayfish are good live baits.
Rainbow Trout
Physical feature: Rainbow trout have the typical trout-shape with an adipose fin, and a squarish tail that has black spots throughout. The rainbow trout has 10-12 anal rays and a white mouth and gums. Adult rainbow trout average 20 to 23 inches in length and weigh 4 to 8 pounds. Great Lake rainbows can live 6 to 8 years while most small-stream rainbows only live 3 to 4 years.
Habitat: Rainbows are considered fastwater fish, preferring the swift runs and riffle areas of streams. They may live in small creeks, as well as suitable spots in large rivers, the tailwaters of dams, and in lakes and reservoirs. As trout, rainbows live in cold, clean, well-oxygenated water.
Feeding: Rainbow trout are mainly meat eating fish. They feed on a wide variety of prey including insects, crustaceans, mollusks, fish and fish eggs.
Spawn: Rainbow trout spawn in the spring immediately after the ice melts. The usual spawning site chosen is a bed of fine gravel in a riffle above a pool. The female digs a redd (nest) in the gravel by turning on her side and beating her tail up and down. During spawning, the eggs fall into spaces between the gravel and immediately the female begins digging at the upstream edge of the nest covering the eggs with the displaced gravel. The eggs usually hatch in approximately 4 - 7 weeks; however, the time of hatching varies greatly with region and habitat. The fry commence feeding about 15 days after hatching and their diet consists mainly of zooplankton. The growth rate of rainbow trout is variable with area, habitat, life history and quality and quantity of food.
Lures and Bait: live minnows, bugs, eggs, spinners, jigs, spoons,flies
Brown Trout
Physical feature: Brown trout are brown to gold on their back with a cream to slate-colored belly. Most fish have black, gray, yellow and occasionally red spots all surrounded by a white halo. This species has a very noticeable spotted adipose fin between the dorsal and caudal fin. There are no spots on the squarish tail or wormy marks on the back. These features help to distinguish it from other trout.
Habitat: Brown trout prefer cold water with temperatures ranging up to 79 degrees. Their preferred habitat includes areas of boulders, cobble, logs, rootwads and overhead cover. Brown trout will feed in riffles containing rock as small as gravel.
Feeding: Brown trout are carnivorous and feed on a variety of organisms, which includes aquatic and terrestrial insects, molluscs, crustaceans (especially crayfish), salamanders, frogs, rodents, and fishes.
Spawn: Brown trout spawn in late fall to early winter, from mid-October to January depending on location. The usual spawning site is in shallow, gravelly headwaters of streams or gravelly shallows of lakes. The female makes a shallow depression (redd) in the gravel into which the eggs are deposisted during spawning. When spawning is completed, the female covers the redd with gravel. The time of hatching and growth rate varies greatly with region and habitat. Brown trout habitat and spawning requirements are similar to the native brook trout, with which it is usually in competition.
Lures and Bait: live minnows, bugs, eggs, spinners, jigs, spoons,flies
Brook Trout
Physical feature: With an olive back covered by wormlike markings, fiery spotted flanks, and white-trimmed fins, the brook trout is one of the most colorful fish in freshwater.
Habitat: Brook trout inhabit clear, cold mountain streams and lakes. They prefer a water temperature of 57-61 degrees. They are rarely found in water that is warmer then 68 degrees and if temperatures exceed 77-80 degrees it is fatal.
Feeding: In streams they prefer aquatic insects that live under the rocks and along the stream bottom. Land insects, like ants and beetles, that fall into the water are readily eaten, as are small crayfish. They will eat other small fish and minnows but only when they are easy to catch.
Spawn: Brook trout spawn in late summer or fall, usually during late September, October, or November in southern and eastern Canada. The usual spawning site is in shallow, gravelly headwaters of streams to which the mature fish may travel many kilometres upstream. Spawning occurs during the day after the female fans silt and debris away from the nesting area with her caudal fin. When spawning is completed, the female covers the eggs with gravel. The time of hatching and growth rate varies greatly with region and habitat. The fry become free-swimming when they are about 38 mm (1.5 inches) long. Brook trout habitat and spawning requirements are similar to the brown trout, with which it is usually in competition.
Lures and Bait: live minnows, bugs, eggs, spinners, jigs, spoons,flies
