Editing Chain pickerel

{{short description|Species of freshwater fish}}
{{speciesbox
| name          = Chain pickerel
| image         = FMIB 43021 Pickerel (Lucius reticulatus Le Sueur) From a Pond in Massachusetts.jpeg
| image_caption = Illustration of ''Esox niger''.
| image_upright = 1.1
| status        = LC
| status_system = IUCN3.1
| status_ref    = <ref name="iucn status 12 November 2021">{{cite iucn |author=NatureServe |date=2013 |title=''Esox niger'' |volume=2013 |page=e.T202402A15363088 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2013-1.RLTS.T202402A15363088.en |access-date=12 November 2021}}</ref>
| genus         = Esox
| species       = niger
| authority     = [[Charles Alexandre Lesueur|Lesueur]], 1818<ref>{{ITIS |id=162143 |taxon=Esox niger |access-date=5 December 2004}}</ref>
| synonyms      = ''Esox reticulatus'' (Lesueur, 1818)
| synonyms_ref = <ref>{{cite web |website=FishBase|title=Synonyms of ''Esox niger''|author=dsantos|date=5 August 2014|url=https://www.fishbase.se/Nomenclature/SynonymsList.php?ID=2712&SynCode=29963&GenusName=Esox&SpeciesName=niger|access-date=20 January 2023}}</ref>
}}
The '''chain pickerel''' ('''''Esox niger''''') is a [[species]] of [[freshwater fish]] in the pike [[family (biology)|family]] (family [[Esocidae]]) of [[order (biology)|order]] [[Esociformes]].<ref>{{FishBase_species|genus=Esox|species=niger|year=2004|month=October}}</ref> The chain pickerel and the [[American pickerel]] (''E. americanus'') belong to the ''Esox'' [[genus]] of pike.<ref name=range/>

==Taxonomy==
French naturalist [[Charles Alexandre Lesueur]] described the chain pickerel in 1818. Its species name is the [[Latin]] word ''niger'' "black".<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |url=http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.04.0059%3Aentry%3Dniger1 |title=nĭger |encyclopedia=A Latin Dictionary|last1=Lewis|first1=Charlton T.|last2=Short|first2=Charles|access-date=10 December 2022|year=1879|publisher=Clarendon Press|location=Oxford|via=[[Perseus Digital Library]]}}</ref>

Nicknames include the "southern pike", "grass pike", "jack", "jackfish", "gunny" and "eastern pickerel". In central Florida the chain pickerel is known locally as "Gatorfish" <ref name="fuller">{{cite web |url=https://nas.er.usgs.gov/queries/factsheet.aspx?SpeciesID=681|title=''Esox niger'' (Chain Pickerel)|website=Nonindigenous Aquatic Species|publisher=U.S. Geological Survey|last1=Fuller|first1=P.|last2=Larson|first2=J.|last3=Makled|first3=T.H.|last4=Lower|first4=E.|last5=Fusaro|first5=A.|date=12 September 2019|orig-date=Peer reviewed 30 January 2015|access-date=20 January 2023}}</ref>

==Description==
The chain pickerel has a distinctive, dark, chain-like pattern on its greenish sides. There is a vertical dark marking underneath the eye, which helps to distinguish the chain pickerel from [[redfin pickerel]] (''Esox americanus americanus'') and [[grass pickerel]] (''E. americanus vermiculatus''), in which the mark curves posteriorly.<ref name="Kirk">{{cite web |last=Kirk|first=Jacob|title=Chain Pickerel (''Esox niger'')|url=https://www.cfr.msstate.edu/wildlife/fisheries/?a=detail&id=70&info=|publisher=Mississippi State University|website=Fishes of Mississippi|access-date=11 December 2022|date=11 December 2022}}</ref>  Its body outline resembles that of the [[northern pike]] (''E. lucius''). Unlike northern pike, however, the [[opercle]]s and cheeks of chain pickerel are entirely scaled.<ref name=range/>  It may reach up to {{convert|78.7|cm|in}} long only on rare occasions.<ref name="Kirk"/>  The average size for chain pickerel, however, is 24&nbsp;in (61 cm) and 3&nbsp;lb (1 1/2 kg). (The average chain pickerel caught by fishermen is under 2&nbsp;lb).  It lives around 8 yr. In some places{{where|date=December 2022}} the pickerel is known as a "gunfish", "gunny" or "slime dart",{{citation needed|date=December 2022}} due to its characteristic slime coating.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.lohud.com/story/sports/columnists/2014/05/19/outdoors-time-target-pickerel/9312245/|title=Outdoors: It's time to target pickerel|access-date=10 December 2022|last=Sapir|first=Glenn|date=19 May 2014|website=lohud.}}</ref>

A blue color morph lacking the usual reticulated pattern has been described in a [[New York (state)|New York]] population.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Menzel|first1=Bruce W.|last2=Green Jr.|first2=David M.|title=A Color Mutant of the Chain Pickerel, ''Esox niger'' LeSueur|journal=Transactions of the American Fisheries Society|doi=10.1577/1548-8659(1972)101<370:ACMOTC>2.0.CO;2|pages=370–372|volume=101|issue=2|year=1972}}</ref>

==Distribution==
[[File:Esox niger map.svg|thumb|right|Chain pickerel's range. The species is considered invasive in some northern regions, like Nova Scotia.]] Its range is along the eastern coast of North America from southern [[Canada]] to [[Florida]], and west to [[Texas]]. In the [[New England]], the species occurs in [[Maine]] and [[New Hampshire]]. The fish inhabits [[fresh water|fresh]] and [[brackish water]] from the [[Mississippi Valley]]. It also is commonly found in [[Lake Michigan]] and the lower portion of the [[Great Lakes]].<ref name=range>''Pike, Pickerel and Muskalonge'', Alfred C. Weed, [[Zoology]] Leaflet 9, Field Museum of Natural History, [[Chicago, Illinois]], 1927, pg. 19.</ref>  In the [[Canadian Maritimes]], chain pickerel is known from [[New Brunswick]] and [[Nova Scotia]]. 

Chain pickerel is considered an [[invasive species]] in Nova Scotia, where [[native species|native]] fish stocks have been severely impacted by the effects of its introduction, primarily through its role as a voracious [[predator]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://nsinvasives.ca/chain-pickerel/|title = Chain Pickerel - Nova Scotia Invasive Species Council|date = 2025-05-15}}</ref> Historical [[angling]] destinations in the province's mainland, like [[Kejimkujik National Park]], have been heavily impacted by the illegal introduction of this fish to the area.<ref>{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=2025-03-24 |title=Fishing |url=https://parks.canada.ca/pn-np/ns/kejimkujik/activ/peche-fishing |access-date=2025-03-24 |website=parks.canada.ca}}</ref>

==Habitat==
Chain pickerel live in a variety of habitats, including pools within creeks or rivers,<ref name="fuller"/><ref>{{cite web |url=https://dwr.virginia.gov/wildlife/fish/chain-pickerel/|title=Chain Pickerel|website=Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources|access-date=10 December 2022|year=2022}}</ref> lakes with vegetation cover, [[swamp]]s<ref name="fuller"/> and other [[wetland]]s.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.chesapeakebay.net/discover/field-guide/entry/chain-pickerel|title=Chain Pickerel|website=Chesapeake Bay Program|access-date=10 December 2022|year=2022}}</ref>  Chain pickerel are tolerant of [[brackish water]] with salinity levels of up to 22 ppt.<ref name="fuller"/>  They are also acid tolerant to a [[pH]] of 3.8.<ref name="fuller"/>

==Diet==
[[File:Chain pickerel mouth.png|thumb|right|The roof of a chain pickerel's mouth, showing several rows of angled, sharp teeth.]]
Like the northern pike, the chain pickerel feeds primarily on smaller fish, until it grows large enough to ambush large fish from cover with a rapid lunge and to secure it with its sharp teeth. Chain pickerel are also known to eat frogs, snakes,<ref name=ADorg>{{cite web |url=https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Esox_niger/ |title = ''Esox niger'' Pickerel|website=Animal Diversity Web|last=Shelburne|first=Jacob|archive-date=8 October 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221008020620/https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Esox_niger/|url-status=live|editor-last1=Powers|editor-first1=Karen|editor-last2=Atwood|editor-first2=Alex|editor-last3=Dameron|editor-first3=Marisa|editor-last4=Hammond|editor-first4=George|year=2017}}</ref> worms, mice, other small mammals,<ref name=ADorg /> crayfish, insects,<ref name=ADorg/> and a wide variety of other foods.<ref>{{cite book|last=Sternberg|first=Dick|title=Freshwater Gamefish of North America|year=1987|publisher=Cy DeCosse Incorporated|isbn=0-86573-023-7}}</ref> It is not unusual for pickerel to leap out of the water at flying insects, or even at dangling fishing lures.{{Cn|date=February 2021}} Raney (1942) studied chain pickerel in a New York pond and found that [[golden shiner]]s were found in the stomachs of 47.3% of the 234 chain pickerel examined. [[Brown bullhead]]s were found in 13.8%, and [[pumpkinseed]] sunfish were found in 13.2%. Crayfish of the genus ''[[Cambarus]]'' were present in 42% of the chain pickerel.<ref name=ADorg /><ref>{{cite journal |title=The Summer Food and Habits of the Chain Pickerel (''Esox niger'') of a Small New York Pond|last=Raney|first=Edward C.|journal=The Journal of Wildlife Management|volume=6|issue=1|year=1942|pages=58–66|jstor=3795522|doi=10.2307/3795522}}</ref>

==Reproduction==
Spawning occurs in flooded vegetation at the end of winter or beginning of spring<ref name="Kirk"/><ref name="ADorg"/> when the water temperature is between {{convert|2|-|22|C|F}}.<ref name="ADorg"/>  A secondary fall spawning has been reported in [[Pennsylvania]].<ref name="Ross">{{cite book|last=Ross|first=Stephen T.|title=Inland Fishes of Mississippi|year=2001|publisher=Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks|isbn=1-57806-246-2|pages=336–338}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last=Miller|first=Jack G.|year=1962|journal=Transactions of the American Fisheries Society|volume=91|issue=3|pages=323|doi=10.1577/1548-8659(1962)91[323:OORCPI]2.0.CO;2|title=Occurrence of Ripe Chain Pickerel in the Fall}}</ref>  Fertilization is external and eggs and sperm are mixed by the adults' tail movements.<ref name="Ross"/><ref>{{cite journal|last=Armbruster|first=Daniel C.|title=Observations on the Natural History of the Chain Pickerel (''Esox niger'')|journal=The Ohio Journal of Science|volume=59|issue=1|pages=55–58|year=1959|hdl=1811/4599 |url=http://hdl.handle.net/1811/4599|access-date=11 December 2022|issn=0030-0950}}</ref>  Up to 50,000 eggs may be released by the female.<ref name="ADorg"/>  No parental care is provided, and the eggs hatch between six and twelve days after they are laid.<ref name="Ross"/>  The fry possess adhesive glands on their snouts that they use to attach to vegetation.<ref name="Ross"/><ref>{{cite journal|last=Underhill|first=A.H.|title=Studies on the Development, Growth and Maturity of the Chain Pickerel, ''Esox niger'' Lesueur|journal=The Journal of Wildlife Management|volume=13|issue=4|year=1949|pages=377–391|doi=10.2307/3795630|jstor=3795630}}</ref>  It takes six to eight days for the fry to absorb their [[yolk]] sac, at which point they begin to actively hunt.<ref name="ADorg"/>

==Angling==
The chain pickerel is a popular [[Angling|sport fish]]. It is an energetic fighter when hooked. Anglers have success with live [[minnow]]s, [[spinnerbait]]s, [[spoon lure|spoon]]s, [[Topwater fishing lure|topwater lures]], [[Plug (fishing)|plugs]], and [[Artificial fly|flies]], usually tied with some kind of [[feather]] or [[fur|bucktail]] material.<ref>{{cite web |title=Pickerel Fishing Tips |url=https://www.riversearch.com/site/how-to-catch-pickerel-fishing-tips.html |website=Riversearch |date=14 March 2020 |access-date=7 April 2020}}</ref>  If the angler intends to release a fish, it is advisable use pliers to flatten the barbs on the lure's hooks. Chain pickerel can swallow an entire lure, so it will be much easier to free a deeply hooked fish and get it back into the water as soon as possible.{{Cn|date=February 2021}}
[[File:Chain pickerel - Cranston RI.jpg|thumb|A chain pickerel caught from [[Dyer Pond]] in [[Cranston, Rhode Island]]]]

Practically any bass lure can be effective for pickerel, although like most pike, they seem to be particularly susceptible to flashy lures which imitate small [[forage fish]]. Dragging a plastic worm, lizard, frog, or other soft imitation can also be extremely effective.  A [[Texas rig]] method is recommended with these soft baits for productive fishing in the weeds.{{Cn|date=February 2021}}

A steel leader is necessary for sharp-toothed and active fish at two to three pounds. The angler would also do well to use 12- to 17-lb-test line on an open-faced spinning reel.  Methods are similar to those for bass, such as dragging a lure through weeds in shallow water and jerking it side-to-side to give it the look of injured prey. Chain pickerel are voracious and opportunistic feeders, and will attack most any fodder that moves into their range of vision.{{Cn|date=February 2021}}

The [[International Game Fish Association]] (IGFA) all-tackle world record chain pickerel is a {{convert|4.25|kg|lb|abbr=on}} fish, caught in [[Homerville, Georgia]] on February 17, 1961 by angler Baxley McQuaig, Jr., while the IGFA all-tackle length world record is {{convert|65|cm|in}} long, caught in [[Henderson Harbor]], [[Lake Ontario]], New York on November 4, 2019 by angler Burnie Haney.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://igfa.org/igfa-world-records-search/?search_type=CommonName&search_term_1=Pickerel,%20chain|title=Pickerel, chain (''Esox niger'')|website=International Game Fish Association|access-date=11 December 2022}}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Wikispecies}}
*[https://nas.er.usgs.gov/queries/greatLakes/FactSheet.aspx?SpeciesID=681&Potential=N&Type=0&HUCNumber=DGreatLakes GLANSIS Species FactSheet]
{{Commons category|position=left}}

{{Taxonbar|from=Q93596}}

[[Category:Esox|Chain pickerel]]
[[Category:Fish of the Eastern United States]]
[[Category:Fish of the Great Lakes]]
[[Category:Fauna of the Northeastern United States]]
[[Category:Freshwater fish of the Southeastern United States]]
[[Category:Fish described in 1818|Chain pickerel]]
[[Category:Taxa named by Charles Alexandre Lesueur|Chain pickerel]]
[[Category:Freshwater fish of North America]]