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The Muskellunge or muskie or musky (Esox masquinongy) are large, relatively rare freshwater fish of North America. They are the largest member of the pike family, Esocidae. The name muskellunge comes from the Ojibwe word maashkinoozhe, meaning "ugly pike," by way of French masque allongé (modified from the Ojibwe word by folk etymology), "long mask." Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 800 × 563 pixelsFull resolution (2240 × 1576 pixel, file size: 3. ...
The conservation status of a species is an indicator of the likelihood of that species continuing to survive either in the present day or the future. ...
Image File history File links Status_iucn3. ...
Least Concern (LC) is an IUCN category assigned to extant species or lower taxa which have been evaluated but do not qualify for any other category. ...
For other uses, see Scientific classification (disambiguation). ...
For other uses, see Animal (disambiguation). ...
Typical Classes See below Chordates (phylum Chordata) are a group of animals that includes the vertebrates, together with several closely related invertebrates. ...
Orders See text The Actinopterygii are the ray-finned fish. ...
Families Esocidae (pikes) Umbridae (mudminnows) Esociformes is a small order of ray-finned fish, with two families. ...
Species E. americanus – grass and redfin pickerels E. lucius – northern pike E. masquinongy – muskellunge E. niger – chain pickerel – Amur pike Esox Linnaeus, 1758, is a genus of freshwater fish, the only member of the pike family (family Esocidae) of order Esociformes. ...
weenie // “Pickerel†redirects here. ...
This article does not cite any references or sources. ...
Carl Linnaeus, Latinized as Carolus Linnaeus, also known after his ennoblement as , (May 23, 1707[1] – January 10, 1778), was a Swedish botanist, physician and zoologist[2] who laid the foundations for the modern scheme of nomenclature. ...
Year 1758 (MDCCLVIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Thursday of the 11-day slower Julian calendar). ...
For other uses, see Fish (disambiguation). ...
North America North America is a continent[1] in the Earths northern hemisphere and (chiefly) western hemisphere. ...
weenie // “Pickerel†redirects here. ...
Species E. americanus – grass and redfin pickerels E. lucius – northern pike E. masquinongy – muskellunge E. niger – chain pickerel – Amur pike Esox Linnaeus, 1758, is a genus of freshwater fish, the only member of the pike family (family Esocidae) of order Esociformes. ...
Ojibwe, Ojibwa, Chippewa or Anishinaabemowin in Eastern Ojibwe syllabics) is the third most commonly spoken Native language in Canada (after Cree and Inuktitut), and the fourth most spoken in North America (behind Navajo, Cree, and Inuktitut). ...
Folk etymology is a term used in two distinct ways: A commonly held misunderstanding of the origin of a particular word, a false etymology. ...
Muskellunge are called various names, such as, Ohio Muskellunge, Barred Muskellunge, Ohio River Pike, Allegheny River Pike, Jack Pike, Unspotted Muskellunge, Wisconsin Muskellunge and Barred Muskellunge. The Allegheny River (historically, especially in New York state, also spelled Allegany River) is a principal tributary of the Ohio River, which it forms with the Monongahela River at the downtown Pittsburghs Golden Triangle point. The river is approximately 325 mi (523 km) long, in the U.S. states...
Overview
Muskellunge are found in northern Wisconsin lakes, northern Minnesota, and the Great Lakes region north to Canada, the St. Lawrence River, Hudson Bay, and in the Upper Mississippi Valley and northward, although the species extends as far south as Chattanooga, TN in the lower Tennessee River Valley. They prefer cold, clear lakes and large rivers, where they lurk among the weeds rocks and other structural objects, to rest. The fish forms 2 home ranges, a shallow summer range and a deep summer range, the shallow range is much smaller than the deep range. A musky will continually move in the ranges searching for food and the correct water temperature. Official language(s) None Capital Madison Largest city Milwaukee Area Ranked 23rd - Total 65,498 sq mi (169,790 km²) - Width 260 miles (420 km) - Length 310 miles (500 km) - % water 17 - Latitude 42° 30′ N to 47° 05′ N - Longitude 86° 46′ W to 92° 53′ W Population Ranked...
Capital Saint Paul Largest city Minneapolis Area Ranked 12th - Total 87,014 sq mi (225,365 km²) - Width 250 miles (400 km) - Length 400 miles (645 km) - % water 8. ...
The Great Lakes from space The Laurentian Great Lakes are a group of five large lakes in North America on or near the Canada-United States border. ...
The Saint Lawrence River (French fleuve Saint-Laurent) is a large west-to-east flowing river in the middle latitudes of North America, connecting the Great Lakes with the Atlantic Ocean. ...
Hudson Bay, Canada. ...
This article is about the U.S. state. ...
They closely resemble the Northern pike and pickerels in both appearance and behavior; all are members of the Esocidae family. Like pike or pickerel, their bodies are elongated with flat heads and dorsal, pelvic and anal fins set far back of the head, which is the classic lie-in-wait or ambush predator body plan. Growing to lengths of 61–154 centimetres (2–5 feet) and weights of over 30 kilograms (66 pounds), muskellunge are a light silver, brown or green with dark vertical markings which tend to break up into spots. In some cases markings may be absent altogether, especially in turbid habitats. This is in contrast to northern pike which have dark bodies with light markings. A sure way of distinguishing the two similar species is by counting the sensory pores of the lower jaw. A muskie will have seven or more, the northern pike never has more than six. The lobes of the tail fin in muskellunge also come to a sharper point than those of northern pike. Muskies have no scales on the lower half of their gill cover. Binomial name Esox lucius Linnaeus, 1758 Northern pike The northern pike, Esox lucius, is a carnivorous fish of brackish and freshwaters of the northern hemisphere. ...
Muskies prey upon anything small enough to fit in their mouths, including other fish, crayfish and frogs, to ducklings, snakes, muskrats and other small mammals. Their bill-shaped mouths are large with many sharp teeth. Muskies engulf their prey head-first, sometimes in a single gulp. Although the animals are capable of swallowing something up to 30 percent of their total length, selection must be made carefully. Muskellunge are sometimes found dead with their last meal lodged in their throats. Large Muskies have been known to eat fully grown ducks. Image File history File links Size of this preview: 450 × 600 pixelsFull resolution (453 × 604 pixel, file size: 47 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) I, the creator of this work, hereby grant the permission to copy, distribute and/or modify this document under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation...
Image File history File links Size of this preview: 450 × 600 pixelsFull resolution (453 × 604 pixel, file size: 47 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) I, the creator of this work, hereby grant the permission to copy, distribute and/or modify this document under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation...
Families Astacoidea Astacidae Cambaridae Parastacoidea Parastacidae Crayfish, often referred to as crawfish or crawdad, are freshwater crustaceans resembling small lobsters, to which they are closely related. ...
Distribution of frogs (in black) Suborders Archaeobatrachia Mesobatrachia Neobatrachia - List of Anuran families The frogness babe is an amphibian in the order Anura (meaning tail-less from Greek an-, without + oura, tail), formerly referred to as Salientia (Latin saltare, to jump). ...
Subfamilies Dendrocygninae Oxyurinae Anatinae Aythyinae Merginae Duck is the common name for a number of species in the Anatidae family of birds. ...
For other uses, see Snake (disambiguation). ...
Binomial name (Linnaeus, 1766) Muskrat range (native range in red, introduced range in green) Muskrat Tucker hole, middle Patuxent River marsh, Maryland The Muskrat or Musquash (Ondatra zibethicus), the only species in genus Ondatra, is a large aquatic rodent native to North America, and introduced in parts of Europe. ...
Subclasses & Infraclasses Subclass †Allotheria* Subclass Prototheria Subclass Theria Infraclass †Trituberculata Infraclass Metatheria Infraclass Eutheria Mammals (class Mammalia) are warm-blooded, vertebrate animals characterized by the presence of sweat glands, including those that produce milk, and by the presence of: hair, three middle ear bones used in hearing, and a neocortex...
The word duck was also used as slang for the WWII amphibious vehicle called a DUKW. It is also a cricketing term denoting a batsman being dismissed with a score of zero; see golden duck. ...
Anglers seek mature muskies as coveted trophies or simply for a good fight. Their linear speed is had at the expense of maneuverability. While not the marathon runners of the ichthyological world, muskellunge do have a good deal more endurance than their closest relative, the Northern Pike. They are known by anglers for long, powerful runs, and stunning aerial acrobatics. A challenging fish to catch, the muskie has been called "the fish of 10,000 casts". Anglers most often use lures of conventional configurations, but extremely large size, to fish for muskie. The average lure used to catch Muskie is 8-12 inches (20-30 centimeters) in length. Larger lures can also be used to catch large muskies, and many of these types of lures can range from 14-26 inches (35-66 centimeters) in length. Angling is a method of fishing, specifically the practice of catching fish by means of an angle (hook). ...
Muskellunge have been known to form small schools in all lakes. They spawn in mid to late spring, somewhat later than northern pike. Muskies seek shallow vegetated spawning grounds, the males arriving first. Spawning takes place at night and may last from five to ten days. The eggs sink and adhere to plants where they are abandoned by the adults. Eggs which are not eaten by fish, insects or crayfish hatch within two weeks. The fry live on yolk until their mouths develop, at which time they begin to feed on copepods and other planktonic animals. They soon begin to predate other fish, reaching a length of 30.5 cm (12 inches) by November. Orders Calanoida Cyclopoida Gelyelloida Harpacticoida Misophrioida Monstrilloida Mormonilloida Platycopioida Poecilostomatoida Siphonostomatoida Copepods are a group of small crustaceans found in the sea and nearly every freshwater habitat. ...
Photomontage of plankton organisms Plankton are any drifting organism that inhabits the water column of oceans, seas, and bodies of fresh water. ...
Reaching sexual maturity at 3–5 years, muskie may live to approximately 30 years. Females grow faster and live longer than males, and thus reach greater lengths and weights. While muskies along the northern portion of the range may take 7-11 years to reach 40 inches (101 centimeters) of length, the fish in the southern portion of their range may grow to this size in as little as 5 years. Based on where the genetic strain is originally found their genetic potential can vary greatly. The ShoePac strain reaches smaller lengths and weights than the Leech Lake Strain (both stocked through out the mid-west). The Northern musky reach larger sizes due to a "burn out" in the southern fish.
Their predators are few. Birds of prey and humans are predators of adults, but young are hunted by northern pike fingerlings (which have a head start due to their earlier spawning), bass and sunfish. Their low resilience and slow rate of reproduction have caused many governments to institute breeding programs to maintain populations. Anglers are encouraged to practice catch, photo and release when after muskellunge. Orders Accipitriformes Cathartidae Pandionidae Accipitridae Sagittariidae Falconiformes Falconidae A bird of prey or raptor is a bird that hunts its food, especially one that preys on mammals or other birds. ...
This article is about modern humans. ...
Striped bass (Morone saxatilis) Largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides) Bass (IPA /bæs/) is a name shared by many different species of popular game fish. ...
Several kinds of things are named sunfish (or sun-fish): A class of sailboat Various fish: Marine fish: The Ocean Sunfish (Mola mola) The Oblong Sunfish (Ranzania laevis) Opah (family Lampridae; two species) The moonfishes of genus Selene (order Perciformes) The African pompano (Alectis ciliaris) (order Perciformes) The American Gamer...
Catch and release is a term given to the recreational fishing where releasing the fish (catch) is believed to be a technique of conservation. ...
While very ferocious predators, muskellunge do not live up to many of the myths that surround them. In general, most stories one hears about a muskie "attack" are either folk legends or hyperbole. Muskies have been known to attempt to strike at mammals and birds on the shoreline, but this is a very rare occurrence, although they will not hesitate to take a rodent, or duckling swimming above them. Muskies are known to eat babies very frequently so watch out for your babies. (Whoever wrote the last sentence was an idiot!)
Subspecies and hybrids Though interbreeding with other pike species makes exact classification difficult, there are three recognized subspecies of muskellunge. For more information on the various subspecies, please see the Becker's text[1]. - Great Lakes (spotted) Muskellunge (Esox masquinongy masquinongy)
The most common variety in the Great Lakes Basin and surrounding area. The spots on the body of the Great Lakes Musky seem to form oblique rows. Great Lakes Basin The Great Lakes Basin consists of the Great Lakes and the surrounding lands of the states of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin in the United States, and the provinces of Ontario and Quebec in Canada, whose direct runoff and watersheds form a...
- Chautauqua Muskellunge (Esox masquinongy ohioensis)
A subspecies present in the Ohio River system; Chautauqua Lake; Lake Ontario, and the St. Lawrence River. This article is about the zoological term. ...
View of Pittsburgh, the largest metropolitan area on the Ohio River, where the Allegheny River (left) and the Monongahela River (right) join at Point State Park to form the Ohio River Cincinnati, Ohio is a well known city along the Ohio River, historically known for its riverboats. ...
Chautauqua Lake is located entirely within Chautauqua County, New York. ...
Lake Ontario, bounded on the north by the Canadian province of Ontario and on the south by Ontarios Niagara Peninsula and by New York State, USA, is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. ...
The Saint Lawrence River (French fleuve Saint-Laurent) is a large west-to-east flowing river in the middle latitudes of North America, connecting the Great Lakes with the Atlantic Ocean. ...
- Clear/barred Musky (Esox masquinongy immaculatus)
The most common variation of muskellunge found in the inland lakes of Wisconsin, Minnesota, northwestern Ontario and southeastern Manitoba. - Tiger Muskellunge (Esox masquinongy X Esox lucius)
Because of their shared preferences, muskellunge and northern pike often occur in the same body of water, leading to incidents of interbreeding. A cross-breed of the Muskellunge found in the lakes of the Midwest, the Tiger Muskellunge is hybrid of the Great Lakes Muskellunge and the Northern Pike. The offspring of these rare couplings are sterile, with the exception of a few large females. Most specimens are introduced via stocking programs for the benefit of sport fishermen. These Tiger Muskies reach a smaller size than Muskies but will grow faster than either parent. They are smaller than purebred muskies but share their coloration. However, tiger muskies have tails similar to northern pike. The body is apt to be more or less silvery, without spots, but with indistinct crossbands. // This article is about a biological term. ...
Binomial name Esox lucius Linnaeus, 1758 Northern pike The northern pike, Esox lucius, is a carnivorous fish of brackish and freshwaters of the northern hemisphere. ...
Infertility primarily refers to the biological inability of a man or a woman to contribute to conception. ...
Spots (also known as spotting, blades, dots or hot knives) is a method of smoking cannabis, where small pieces of the plant are placed between two very hot knives and the smoke produced is inhaled. ...
Trivia - Inspired hard rock Canadian recording artists of the same name "Muskellunge".[2]
- Mascot of Muskingum College in New Concord Ohio.[3]
Muskingum College is a selective, private four-year liberal arts college located in New Concord, Ohio, approximately sixty miles east of the state capital of Columbus. ...
References
See also Look up Muskellunge in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Muskellunge Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ...
Wiktionary (a portmanteau of wiki and dictionary) is a multilingual, Web-based project to create a free content dictionary, available in over 150 languages. ...
Image File history File links Wikispecies-logo. ...
Wikispecies is a wiki-based online project supported by the Wikimedia Foundation that aims to create a comprehensive free content catalogue of all species (including animalia, plantae, fungi, bacteria, archaea, and protista). ...
Image File history File links Commons-logo. ...
Binomial name Esox lucius Linnaeus, 1758 Northern pike The northern pike, Esox lucius, is a carnivorous fish of brackish and freshwaters of the northern hemisphere. ...
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