Wives Tale?

[Andrew.M]

I heard that if there is a full moon the pike don't bite as much because their gums grow over their teeth. I think this is BS but I'm kind of curious if this is true. Any of you guys heard of this or something similar?

[BBJTKLE&FISHINGADVENTURES]

Theres all sorts of crap reason's but real reason they do feed in a full moon is due to the light penetrateing thru , ice , water therefore they feed more heavily at night .

[brianscott]

Its best for everybody if I stay inside during a full moon;)

[Jester]

Wind from the east.....fish bite the least..

Wind from the west...fish bite the best...:)

It's true...:wave:

[Drano]

I heard that if there is a full moon the pike don't bite as much because their gums grow over their teeth. I think this is BS but I'm kind of curious if this is true. Any of you guys heard of this or something similar?

A dentist says this is true..:):):)

[Cal]

I dont believe a word of it, anything to do with pike and sore gums is a load of bs. Every book, magazine, fishing show, fisheries biologist I've ever heard talk about the "sore gums" has said its not true. I've caught pike around the full moon and never seen one with swollen gums. Word is that this happens evey mid winter and mid summer too, or after a cold front as well, pretty much any time the fishing gets tough someone will start blaming sore gums. Last weekend was pretty slow up here, I guess the walleye. trout. ling and pearch must all have caught sore gums from the pike or somthing :)

[Reeves1]

I have the data that states AB pike loose their teeth each winter.
Pike in the east do not loose them.

Never read anything about the moon though (in regards to teeth).

BBJ.....remind me now and again (via PM) to dig this info out....I'll e-mail it to you after scanning it.

[duffy4]

I have the data that states AB pike loose their teeth each winter.
Pike in the east do not loose them.

Never read anything about the moon though (in regards to teeth).

BBJ.....remind me now and again (via PM) to dig this info out....I'll e-mail it to you after scanning it.

I would really like to see this "data".

[Walleyes]

I have the data that states AB pike loose their teeth each winter.
Pike in the east do not loose them.

Never read anything about the moon though (in regards to teeth).

BBJ.....remind me now and again (via PM) to dig this info out....I'll e-mail it to you after scanning it.


I will have to call B.S. on this one. I do beleive we have all caught enough Pike through the winter to know that at no time do they loose their teeth.

[Badback]

I’ve heard that they don’t bite due to the moon’s gravitational pull on a full moon….But I’ve seen that theory busted many times …

[clarki]

pike shed the odd tooth the same way sharks do. plain and simple.

M

[Mish]

Theres all sorts of crap reason's but real reason they don't feed iin a full moon is due to the light penetrateing thru , ice , water therefore they feed more heavily at night .

Sorry, BSJ, I still don't understand. They don't feed during a full moon because they can see better? So pike are night feeders now? Huh, learn something new everyday.

And Reeves, I'm not saying you don't have data that say pike shed their teeth. I'm just saying it's wrong.

[mulecrazy]

people like to find any reason to explain the lack of the bite. what it is I don't know but it can change pretty quick. Down south we could catch 25-30 fish one day and then a SE wind (manyberries chinook) comes in overnight and maybe 2-3 the next day. My guess is it is the barometric pressure changes that turn them off but I ain't no scientist.

[Cal]

I've heard that pike will feed at night if the have enough moon light and I'm not saying it isnt true, they must be able to find food in the dark to some degree if they can find food in Coal lake when theres an algae bloom. Also if they couldnt find food in the dark they would starve in the far north during the winter. Somthing I found interesting though, even when I was up in the yukon a few summers ago with plenty of light all the time the pike fishing seemed to slow down after midnight. Could have just been me though, does anyone who has fished the far north have an opinion on this?

[Reeves1]

I will have to call B.S. on this one. I do beleive we have all caught enough Pike through the winter to know that at no time do they loose their teeth.


Walleyes.....in coming mail !

Nice to see folks here love to word their thoughts so eloquently.

Subtle as a sledge hammer :lol:

[Cal]

Send that data my way too buddy, I've caught hundreds of pike throughout the whole year andI've never seen one that didnt have at least 1000 extra teeth. lol Just shove your hand in there and see for yourself. All the data I've heard from any reputable source says that they are constatly losing teeth and growing them back just like a shark as was pointed out earlyer. I would also agree with whoever said that they react poorly to a changing barometer, for such an agressive fish they seem to be way more sensitive in this area than anything else I've fished for. All my best pike days have been as a cold front moves in, the fishing will sometimes stay good through the cold front but almost always comes to a near stand still once its over. I concider this to be the single most important aspect to pike fishing.

[Cal]

Send that data my way too buddy, I've caught hundreds of pike throughout the whole year andI've never seen one that didnt have at least 1000 extra teeth. lol Just shove your hand in there and see for yourself. All the data I've heard from any reputable source says that they are constatly losing teeth and growing them back just like a shark as was pointed out earlyer. I would also agree with whoever said that they react poorly to a changing barometer, for such an agressive fish they seem to be way more sensitive in this area than anything else I've fished for. All my best pike days have been as a cold front moves in, the fishing will sometimes stay good through the cold front but almost always comes to a near stand still once its over. I concider this to be the single most important aspect to pike fishing.

[Walleyes]

Walleyes.....in coming mail !

Nice to see folks here love to word their thoughts so eloquently.

Subtle as a sledge hammer :lol:

Got the mail Reeves..

And hey man my coment wasn't a direct shot at you just on the info sorry if it came out bad,, my apolagies.

[Sundancefisher]

Simple truth imho as a past biologist is that fish tend to eat sporadically and not continually during their evolved feeding times whether that be day, night or dusk.

What effects feeding are:

1. Hunger

Fish eat when hungry and not continually

2. Safety (Primary issue for most fish)

Think of a perch...they are better off to wait till they are hungry and then go to town and eat as much as possible and then go and hide in the weeds. A perch can not be out feeding 24/7 because there is probably a fish or bird or mammal bigger then them looking to eat them. Schooling protects them to some degree but also staying under cover as long a possible. If you had to pass man eating dinasaurs to get a meal each time...how many trips to the store or restaurant would you make a day?

3. Weather

Storm front and pressure changes does affect the fish and will cause them to change their feeding pattern around a storms approach and departure

4. Temperature

Fish will depending upon their species feed better under certain temperatures or require more or less food accordingly. Spring and Fall feed trout eat better then mid Summer trout for longer during the day.

5. Fitness

Sick fish or stressed fish feed less then healthy fish. Stresses include low O2, high water temps...maybe some low water temps in creeks and rivers, pollution, siltation, muddy water, parasites etc.

6. Prey type (size, food quality etc.)

Lots of free shrimp to eat whenever versus having to hunt down a fast moving fish to eat. The better the meal the less often you have to eat. The more food available the less likely your immitation hook will get bitten.

7. Season (spawning versus not, Winter versus Spring etc)

Some fish eat less or not at all when spawning. Catching spawners is usually a territorial response to being bugged during sex.

8. Primary feeding versus Opportunistic Feeding

Sitting and hiding in the weeds and a maggot drops in front of you may trigger a short swim and bite. Whereas during a primary feeding time the fish swarm the hook and actively move around looking for food.

9. Activity Level...are they constantly moving like a tuna or hiding under a rock like a catfish.

If you are a tuna your metabolizm is much higher than a sucker pound for pound and therefore you will be forced to eat more or die.

10. Competition

If 25 buddies are heading towards the same shrimp...first come...first serve applied. You can usually catch more if there are others around. Fish are more fickle if they are by themselves quite often. More time to think about it.

Maybe I missed a few but this gets the thinking started.

Cheers

[Walleyes]

Good read Sundancefisher lots of good stuff, pretty much all common sense but still a good read.

But even with all that said it all boils down to weather or not a person knows how to fish or not. Remember, 90% of the fish are caught by 10% of the fishermen.. Regardless of feeding habits or weather.

[BBJTKLE&FISHINGADVENTURES]

Sorry, BBJ, I still don't understand. They don't feed during a full moon because they can see better? So pike are night feeders now? Huh, learn something new everyday.

And Reeves, I'm not saying you don't have data that say pike shed their teeth. I'm just saying it's wrong.

In fact during a full moon is when the fish will feed I'm not to sure about other species but predatory fish do , from my experience and anything Ive read . As the light from the full moon reflects through the water and this is when they feed at night , with light of the full moon . Of course they will still feed during the day , not as heavily . Google it , and you'll find lots of information , the same goes for wildlife , as they will feed at night with the light of the full moon .Hope that helps.

[Mish]

Theres all sorts of crap reason's but real reason they don't feed iin a full moon is due to the light penetrateing thru , ice , water therefore they feed more heavily at night .

In fact during a full moon is when the fish will feed I'm not to sure about other species but predatory fish do , from my experience and anything Ive read . As the light from the full moon reflects through the water and this is when they feed at night , with light of the full moon . Of course they will still feed during the day , not as heavily . Google it , and you'll find lots of information , the same goes for wildlife , as they will feed at night with the light of the full moon .Hope that helps.

I don't understand. First you said they don't feed during a full moon because the light is penetrating through the ice. Now you say that they do feed during a full moon because the light is penetrating the ice?? This is really confusing. Do they or don't they feed during a full moon?

[BBJTKLE&FISHINGADVENTURES]

I don't understand. First you said they don't feed during a full moon because the light is penetrating through the ice. Now you say that they do feed during a full moon because the light is penetrating the ice?? This is really confusing. Do they or don't they feed during a full moon?

AHAHAHAHa OPPS Ill fix that , screwed that one up I ment they do feed , at night more rather during the night as the light of the full moon .

[BBJTKLE&FISHINGADVENTURES]

I don't understand. First you said they don't feed during a full moon because the light is penetrating through the ice. Now you say that they do feed during a full moon because the light is penetrating the ice?? This is really confusing. Do they or don't they feed during a full moon?

And it doesnt matter ice or no ice . Maybe do a little reasearch , simply google fish feeding habits during fullmoon , theres tons of info .

[Mish]

And it doesnt matter ice or no ice . Maybe do a little reasearch , simply google fish feeding habits during fullmoon , theres tons of info .

Right...I need to do research. :rolleye2:

[hockeyfish]

he means that pike will feed heavily at night during a full moon because of the brightness.....its not that complicated

[beerhunter]

Right...I need to do research. :rolleye2:

Apparently you do, you keep asking questions..........

[Sundancefisher]

Good read Sundancefisher lots of good stuff, pretty much all common sense but still a good read.

But even with all that said it all boils down to weather or not a person knows how to fish or not. Remember, 90% of the fish are caught by 10% of the fishermen.. Regardless of feeding habits or weather.

I agree.

When you distill out the natural reasons why fish bite or don't bite you then get down to skill of the fishermen.

Skill could also be based upon many attributes...

1) Type of lure

2) Experience using lure

3) Variety of lures and experience using each one

4) Type of bait

5) Hook presentation

a) Speed
b) Depth
c) Movement variabilities

6) Size of hook

7) Time of day fishing

8) Type of water, lake, stream, river etc.

9) Time spent fishing

10) Numbers of other anglers fishing either or both before or during your fishing trip

and we can all name numerous other ones.

I find what distills a good fisherman from a bad fisherman is experience and ability to use their honed skill to effectively use their own arsenal of weapons (hooks etc) and if they are not working start to think outside the box and/or copy other successful anglers around them.

Problem I see with many anglers is they are one trick ponies. They always use the same small variety/types of lures and fish them the same way. Often this stems from being pigeon holed in one area and getting really really good at that location. Move that person to a new lake...even with same species and they often struggle. Put them in a place with different types of fish and they get skunked.

I do my best fishing by copying others success and my own fishing experience allows me to often know what they are doing differently if they won't say.

How many people on the board will actually give someone a hook and sit down for 5-10 minutes and show them what makes your technique so successful. That is where the real secrecy starts:lol:

[packhuntr]

Im pickin up what your layin down there Mish,,, and beleive me, im findin it funny as all He**!!!:lol::lol::lol::lol: BSJ, please stop with the one sentance lessons and lay some of that knowledge on us,, you "pike and walleye specialist" you.:lol:

[MrDave]

My Dad used to use this excuse too, but I never caught a pike without teeth yet. I call old fisher tale on this. I have caught pike at night back when I was young, seemed to take the smelly old smelts.

[FiveO]

Im pickin up what your layin down there Mish,,, and beleive me, im findin it funny as all He**!!!:lol::lol::lol::lol: BSJ, please stop with the one sentance lessons and lay some of that knowledge on us,, you "pike and walleye specialist" you.:lol:

Nail on the head. I couldnt figure out how to word it without crossing the line.
:lol:

[BBJTKLE&FISHINGADVENTURES]

I don't know why I bother , you know seems to be everything someone says its contradicted by the all knowing clowns that prowl this place . Just give it a rest already .And I'm at the point I don't care if I get banned for speaking my mind and the truth. In anything Ive ever said is best to my knowledge and experience , and well in my book Experience beats a book any day . And if you got a problem with that , then so be it .

[Big.Bear]

you know seems to be everything someone says its contradicted by the all knowing clowns that prowl this place .

Dude you just replied to one of my threads flapping your gums where they didn't belong just to pizz me off. Practice what you preach.

[BBJTKLE&FISHINGADVENTURES]

Dude you just replied to one of my threads flapping your gums where they didn't belong just to pizz me off. Practice what you preach.
YOUR POST READ THE TOP OF YOUR SCREEN BUDDY , THREAD NAME Wives Tale ? Hummmm .

[Big.Bear]

YOUR POST READ THE TOP OF YOUR SCREEN BUDDY , THREAD NAME Wives Tale ? Hummmm .


aww are you mad not everyone agrees with you? its ok a tutu will look good on you.

[Cal]

Chill out bbj, you make yourself a fun dude to pick on. To me a few of your posts seemed to contradict themselfs though I dont think you meant them to. Read them carefully. Lets hope the drilling picks up and we'll all have better things to do than debate weather pike get sore gums on a full moon, I'm surprised such a bizare superstition drew this much debate. Like I said hope the work picks up.

[Mish]

Apparently you do, you keep asking questions..........

he means that pike will feed heavily at night during a full moon because of the brightness.....its not that complicated

I don't know why I bother , you know seems to be everything someone says its contradicted by the all knowing clowns that prowl this place . Just give it a rest already .And I'm at the point I don't care if I get banned for speaking my mind and the truth. In anything Ive ever said is best to my knowledge and experience , and well in my book Experience beats a book any day . And if you got a problem with that , then so be it .


I'm asking questions, not because I need to Google pike feeding habits, but because John seems to have the habit of saying one thing...and then saying the exact opposite two posts later. It's not "all knowing clowns" that are contradicting you, John, you are contradicting yourself, I am just pointing it out. To me, this is quite confusing. Is grass green? Or is it pink? I'm trying to understand the psyche of BSJ.

[bobbypetrolia]

I'm trying to understand the psyche of BSJ.

This thread has officially come full circle.........like the bleeding, swollen mouths of the northern pike after it sheds its teeth under the light of the full moon; the psyche of BSJ cannot be understood.......It just is.

[Walleyes]

This thread has officially come full circle.........like the bleeding, swollen mouths of the northern pike after it sheds its teeth under the light of the full moon; the psyche of BSJ cannot be understood.......It just is.

:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

Talk about predetory feeding. Its like a bunch of post spawn Pike on a feeding frenzy they smell blood and all attack at once..

Come on lighten it up a bit people lets get back on track..

[FisherPotch]

Am i hearing this right!!!!!??????

Not one of you has caught a pike with his mouth all gummed up?????

U boys just aint payed enough attention then. I seem to remember a certain photo of someone mouthing a pike!!! Anybody remember that? HMMM? Ya thats right MOUTHED a pike :tongue2:

Do you think he would mouth a pike bare handed if it was full of razors? Those razors were gummed up, dont know why or how but most the times I've seen it have been around spring (ie spawn for pike).
I don't know if they lose there teeth or not, I'd imagine they would like sharks as someone else stated. Just a tooth here and there not all of them at once.


As for the Moon stuff I cant believe in this day and age I have to say this. The moon effects EVERYTHING! All criters, u, me, fish, deer, the whole damn lot. Ever notice how when U drive to the lake and see 200 deer on your way the fishing is good? How bout how the fishing sucks when u see no criters on route to the lake. Now I cant attribute all this to the moon. The sun and tides have been PROVEN to have effects on all criters and there behavior. I suggest u folks type SOLUNAR into google. The times when the moon rises and sets and the times the sun rises and sets come in to be key variables to Solunar periods. Using the sun, moon and tides (All proven to be realavant variables) one can actually predict relatively accuratly what the fishing will be like.

I suggest to those of you that keep a fishing log to start tracking data on the moon phase, the sun rise and set times, and moon rise and set times. I know with enough data you will see a pattern. Focus on the least obvious one to find the peak hours of fishing (ie moon rise and set). No methods are perfect and this science is far from understood. But I live and die on the lake by this stuff. I suggest a fishing log to all people, the more variables that you collect the more detailed your log. If you fish one lake enough a good log can virtualy lead you to where the fish should be. My 2 cents.

[walker197]

not to mention guys that pike also have those pressure change sensorrs along their jaw and face they don't neccesarily need light to hunt they can "hear" like a bat does with sonar, or so i've been told

[Big.Bear]

people start to believe all these myths as they need an excuse for when they come home empty handed:evilgrin:

[FisherPotch]

people start to believe all these myths as they need an excuse for when they come home empty handed:evilgrin:

Like my signature says.

Luck is just an excuse for poor fishing

Walker 197 is talking about the lateral line. It is a sense organ that is mainly one line the length of the fish, but there are many receptors located in the head.

Another thing to consider is if the fish is nocturnal or not. Walleye for example have a tapetum lucidium (light gathering layer) in the back of their eyes. Because of this there eye's can adjust rapidly to changes in light. Ie when the sun is setting or rising the level of light is changing most rapidly. At this time the bait fish's eyes are still adjusting to the light change, but the walleye have excelent vision and utilize it while they have the advantage. Hence why dusk and dawn are most frquently the best times to fish. I find walleye are most effected my the solunar periods.

The moon to my knowlege has absolutly nothing to do with pike losing their teeth or having gummed up mouths. I might be wrong................but probably NOT :evilgrin:

[ESOXangler]

pike actually don't have a lateral line but instead have the same nerve endings that you would find in the lateral line spread throughout their body. Also they have terrible vision and hunt mostly off pressure and vibrations only using their vision for the last few seconds before they strike. Pike can also survive with no eyes and you have to believe that cause how else can anything survive in our slimy lakes of central alberta lol

[FisherPotch]

Learn something every day!! and with a user name like that I'll take your word for it. I always thought that they had a lateral line. Do you know about the teeth and gums and how/why that goes down?

[kissacoyote]

It's the absolute truth. Pike have the fastest growing gums in all of nature. Nearing the full moon, they grow faster, and cover their teeth. At the same time, fairies come out and dance on your lawn. If they like you a lot, they will dance every full moon, and you will get "fairy ring" on your lawn. Werewolves, on the other hand, don't wreck your lawn. Vampires come out at the same time and only want what they need until the next full moon. I've been lucky enough not to have met up with either, even after drinking all night in a graveyard, sometimes even on a full moon: Beautiful. (Safest place to be; cops don't look for you there).
Some people even believe that virgins can have babies and that some guys can walk on water. If they can believe that, then I guess that gums growing over teeth isn't much of a stretch.
It's kind of funny how impossible-and-preposterous beliefs of a different religion are called "superstitions", but impossible and preposterous beliefs in your own religion are called "miracles".
Pike are a well known fish. Documented. I'll bet nobody's ever caught a hungry one with gums over their teeth; or no teeth. Get real. Fairies, werewolves and vampires don't exist: Nor do pike grow gums over their teeth.
Jeez, I thought that this was the "Age of Information", not superstition. You guys have the internet. Use it.

[Cal]

Pike sort of appear to have a latteral line to me, not saying that the guy with the name that sounds like the mother of all scrabble cheaters is wrong. Its been a while since I examined one real close but I'm pretty sure the last time I did it seemed to have a latteral line, not as pronounced as alot of other fish but still there.
I've read that they did tests in the UK on pike by cutting nerves to cut out there senses. They were still able to catch live prey without their sight or sense of smell, the study also showed that they relyed their latteral line senses, whether they have an actual latteral line or not, way more than there sense of smell, which appeared to be their least important sense.

[denpacc]

It's the absolute truth. Pike have the fastest growing gums in all of nature. Nearing the full moon, they grow faster, and cover their teeth. At the same time, fairies come out and dance on your lawn. If they like you a lot, they will dance every full moon, and you will get "fairy ring" on your lawn. Werewolves, on the other hand, don't wreck your lawn. Vampires come out at the same time and only want what they need until the next full moon. I've been lucky enough not to have met up with either, even after drinking all night in a graveyard, sometimes even on a full moon: Beautiful. (Safest place to be; cops don't look for you there).
Some people even believe that virgins can have babies and that some guys can walk on water. If they can believe that, then I guess that gums growing over teeth isn't much of a stretch.
It's kind of funny how impossible-and-preposterous beliefs of a different religion are called "superstitions", but impossible and preposterous beliefs in your own religion are called "miracles".
Pike are a well known fish. Documented. I'll bet nobody's ever caught a hungry one with gums over their teeth; or no teeth. Get real. Fairies, werewolves and vampires don't exist: Nor do pike grow gums over their teeth.
Jeez, I thought that this was the "Age of Information", not superstition. You guys have the internet. Use it.

Tell us how you really feel. ROTFLMAO!!!!!!

[pikekalk]

,,next time ur going out...ask ur dentist to go along with you...catch a few pike and let him evaluate....

[TexasTornado]

BSJ is the smartest guy i don't know, listen to every word he say's.......................reading his post's makes me want to go lick windows.