Abstract
To compare vulnerability to predation by northern pike (Esox lucius Linnaeus), several species of fish in various combinations were held with pike in plastic swimming pools with and without cover and in small ponds. The most vulnerable species in order were gizzard shad (Dorosoma cepedianum), carp (Cyprinus carpio), bigmouth buffalo (Ictiobus cyprinellus), fathead minnow (Pimephales promelas), and smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieui). White sucker (Catostomus commersoni), green sunfish (Lepomis cyanellus), largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides), golden shiner (Notemigonus crysoleucas), and yellow perch (Perca flavescens) showed intermediate vulnerability. Channel catfish (Ictalurus punctatus), northern pike, bluegill (Lepomis macrochirus), and black bullhead (Ictalurus melas) were least vulnerable. In two experiments in which fish were put in cages in turbid water, relative vulnerability was the same as in clearer water. Pike could not be conditioned to eat golden shiner or bluegill. There was a tendency for certain sizes of pike to select the smaller carp, fathead minnow, and bluegill within the size ranges tested.
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