Ecological Risk Screening Summary - Northern Pike (Esox lucius) - High Risk

Species that are considered high risk have a well-documented history of invasiveness in at least one location globally, and a high or medium climate match to the contiguous United States.

Northern Pike (Esox lucius) is a species of predatory fish that is native to areas across the northern hemisphere, including some portions of Alaska and the contiguous United States. E. lucius is a large species that preys on other fish, including other predatory fish. The species is an important recreational fish and it is consumed by humans. E. lucius is susceptible to many diseases, two of which, viral hemorrhagic septicemia and spring viraemia of carp virus, are OIE-reportable diseases. E. lucius can also be infected with broad tapeworm that can cause infection in humans who eat under cooked fish. The history of invasiveness is high. E. lucius has a long and well documented history of introductions, mainly through intentional stocking for sport fishing. Most of those introductions have established populations that then had severe impacts on the native systems. E. lucius has been shown to be the cause of multiple species extirpations and is suspected as the cause in many more. E. lucius has also caused changes in the life history of prey species. The climate match is high. Virtually all of the contiguous United States had a high match except for southern Florida and the Northwest, which had low matches. The certainty of assessment is high. The biology, ecology, and invasion history of E. lucius is well documented in peer-reviewed literature. The overall risk assessment category is high.