And according to Dr. De Kay—
D. 21; P. 13; V. 11; A. 21; C. 19-7/7.
And according to Professor Agassiz—
D. 22; P. 18; V. 13; A. 20; C. 26.
This, goes to show that either it is very difficult to count the fin-rays, or that they differ; to the latter of which suppositions my belief inclines, as I think the older the fish the more fin-rays are formed, or so hardened as to be perceptible.
The habits of this class of fish are as similar as their appearance, and whether you capture a tiny pickerel with your fly in some shallow Long Island water, or entrap the huge mascallonge with a treble hook half concealed beneath red flannel and shining tin, they rush with the same eagerness and grasp with the same determination. I amused myself one evening on Long Island in casting over a newly-made shallow pond with my ordinary trout cast of flies, and seeing the ferocity with which pickerel, varying from four to nine inches in length, would dart upon their anticipated prey.
All pickerel inhabit sluggish water, and abound among the long, grassy pickerel weed that thrives upon a muddy bottom. The St. Lawrence, where it winds amid the beautiful Thousand Isles and forms innumerable deep and quiet bays, is their favorite home. The water, flowing from the immense lakes and holding suspended the seeds of aquatic plants, is favorable to the growth of the pickerel weed, and is in every way suitable to the fish themselves. The latter, however, have great power, and can unquestionably stem a strong current, for no doubt they ascend the rapids of that mighty river, being found in the eddies; but they prefer quiet water, where they can lurk among the weeds, watching stealthily for their prey, or bask near the surface in the warm summer sun. Both mascallonge and pickerel abound in the innumerable lakes of Lower Canada, and are so abundant in addition to being almost tasteless, as to be unsalable for food.
In other waters pickerel are found in the summer months among the lily-pads, often in water scarcely deep enough to cover their backs. The federation pike I have never taken, except in some of the remote ponds of the wild woods of Cape Cod, near Sandwich and Wareham, especially in the Little Herring Pond. And although at the time I had no knowledge of the scientific distinctions of fish, I at once recognized the description which I saw for the first time afterward, but had often sought in vain among our works on ichthyology. All the pickerel family are readily distinguishable by their having but one dorsal, and that opposite the anal fin and near the tail, and the sportsman acquainted with one will readily recognize all the tribe.
There are many ways of capturing this fish, and he is not the least particular if he is offered anything that has the semblance of food. He may be trolled for with dead bait, generally a minnow, or better, a yellow perch, on a gang of hooks, or fished for with a live bait and a float, and he will readily take a frog, provided the latter shall not, as described in the “Angler’s Miseries,” have the intelligence to creep out upon a stone and watch the fisherman, while the latter watches his float; but the true way in open water is to fish for him with a spoon. The last is objected to as being too destructive; but as it is clean, requires no bait, and is little trouble, and as the fish are utterly worthless either for sport or the table, the sooner they are destroyed and replaced by nobler substitutes the better.
Among the water-lilies the only mode is to use a long, stiff rod and short line, loaded with one buck-shot about a foot from the hook, and baited either with a minnow, the belly of a yellow perch, or better than all, a slip of the skin of pork cut into something resembling a small fish. The latter never wears out, and can hardly be torn off, while it often is preferred to more natural food. The bait is dropped into the opening among the lily-pads, and sinking rapidly, by the weight of the shot, toward the bottom, is started up again by a twitch of the rod, and goes bobbing up and down till the pickerel, rendered frantic by such an absurd performance, can stand it no longer, and with one furious rush determines to end the gyrations of such a silly creature. Never wait for pickerel to gorge the bait, discard such old fogy notions, and by the aid of a strong rod and line, pull him out at once. At least one-half the time fish eject the bait instead of swallowing it, and no one who has ever eaten pork can question their taste. Waiting five or ten minutes, or till they make two or three runs, will not do in our rapid country. I have seen fish that were corpulent with over-feeding, and surrounded by their favorite food, young herring, taken by a piece of themselves being spun in this manner, when they would touch no other bait.