Norwegian record Northern pike: 19.54 kg

About Northern pike

The northern pike (Esox lucius) is a long, torpedo-shaped predator with a broad, flat duck-bill snout, a mouth full of sharp teeth and a single dorsal fin set far back above the anal fin. Typical fish are 40–70 cm, but where food is plentiful pike can reach around 20 kg in Norway, and even more elsewhere. It favours nutrient-rich lakes and slow rivers with plenty of weed, and tolerates brackish water. It hangs motionless among plants and strikes at lightning speed on fish, frogs and smaller pike. Spawning takes place in early spring in shallow, weedy water. In Norway it occurs naturally in the east, parts of Trøndelag, Troms and Finnmark. Illegal stocking has spread it to new waters where it can wipe out trout, and moving fish is a criminal offence. Pike are caught on spoons, spinners, jerkbaits, deadbait and fly, especially in spring and autumn. Norwegian Red List 2021: Least Concern (LC).

Sources: Artsdatabanken, Store norske leksikon, Lovdata, Wikipedia

• Habitat: Ferskvann
• Best month: Juli

See the species guide

Biggest Northern pike in FishComp

2.7 kg (14 % of the record) by Halvard Høvik Gohde. See the catch

How to register a Norwegian record

1. Norwegian sport-fishing records are registered with Villmarksliv, not with FishComp. Read the rules before you do anything else with the fish.
2. Records are based on weight and approved by a jury. You give the weight and length, where it was caught, the gear you used and any witnesses.
3. Keep your photos and notes from the catch. Logging it in FishComp does not register a record.