Editing Northern pike (section)

{{Short description|Species of fish}}
{{About|the fish|the Canadian band|The Northern Pikes}}
{{More citations needed|date=September 2023}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2020}}
{{speciesbox
| name = Northern pike
| image = Esox lucius ZOO 1.jpg
| image_caption = Northern pike at [[Plzeň Zoo]]
| status = LC
| status_system = IUCN3.1
| status_ref = <ref name=iucn>{{cite iucn | author = NatureServe| title = ''Esox lucius'' | page = e.T135631A133427422 | year = 2018 | errata = 2013 | doi = 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-2.RLTS.T135631A133427422.en | access-date = 19 February 2022}}</ref>
| genus = Esox
| species = lucius
| authority = [[Carl Linnaeus|Linnaeus]], [[10th edition of Systema Naturae|1758]]
| range_map = Distribution map of Esox lucius.png
| range_map_caption = Range of northern pike as traditionally defined (including populations now often regarded as separate species: [[Amur pike|Amur]], [[Aquitanian pike|Aquitanian]], and [[Esox cisalpinus|southern pikes]])
}}

The '''northern pike''' ('''''Esox lucius''''') is a [[species]] of carnivorous [[fish]] of the genus ''[[Esox]]'' (pikes). They are commonly found in [[brackish water|moderately salty]] and [[fresh water]]s of the [[Northern Hemisphere]] (''i.e.'' [[holarctic]] in distribution). They are known simply as a '''pike''' ([[Plural|{{sc|pl}}]]: pike) in [[Great Britain]], [[Ireland]], most of Eastern Europe, [[Canada]] and the [[United States|U.S.]], although in the Midwestern United States, they may just be called a '''Northern.'''<ref>{{Cite web |last=Loesche |first=Max |date=2022-08-27 |title=Different Names for Northern Pike (From Around the World) |url=https://strikeandcatch.com/different-names-for-northern-pike/ |access-date=2024-02-08 |website=Strike and Catch |language=en-US}}</ref>

Pike can grow to a relatively large size. Their average length is about {{convert|40|–|55|cm|in|abbr=on}}, with maximum recorded lengths of up to {{convert|150|cm|in|0|abbr=on}} and maximum weights of {{convert|28.4|kg|abbr=on}}.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.fishbase.org/summary/Esox-lucius.html|title=Esox lucius Linnaeus, 1758 Northern pike|work=Fish Base|publisher=fishbase.org|access-date=2 February 2017}}</ref> The [[International Game Fish Association|IGFA]] currently recognises a {{convert|25|kg|lb|abbr=on}} pike caught by Lothar Louis on Greffern Lake, Germany, on 16 October 1986, as the all-tackle world-record holding northern pike. <ref>{{cite web|url=http://wrec.igfa.org/WRecordsList.aspx?lc=AllTackle&cn=Pike,%20northern|title=pike, northern (''Esox lucius'')|work=IGFA World Record|publisher=IGFA Online|access-date=2 February 2017}}</ref> Northern pike grow to larger sizes in Eurasia than in North America, and in coastal Eurasian regions than inland ones.<ref>Rypel, A.L. 2012. Meta-analysis of growth rates for a circumpolar fish, the northern pike (Esox lucius), with emphasis on effects of continent, climate and latitude. Ecology of Freshwater Fish 21: 521–532.</ref>