About Invasive Pike in Southcentral Alaska
Illegal stocking of northern pike is reducing the quality of fishing in Southcentral Alaska and threatening both wild and stocked fisheries.
The northern pike is native to most of Alaska, but it does not naturally occur south and east of the Alaska Mountain Range except for a remnant population near Yakutat. Pike are top-level predators in aquatic food chains and are highly piscivorous (fish eating). Outside their native range, trout, salmon and other fish have not had time to adapt defenses against pike's predatory tactics. In Southcentral, the northern pike is an invasive species. Invasive species are plants or animals that do not naturally occur in an area and can negatively affect the environment, the economy, and/or recreational activities. In Southcentral Alaska, northern pike are doing just that. Pike were first illegally introduced into water bodies of the area by people, and they are now decimating salmon and trout populations. This causes ecological damage and also negatively affects the economy by reducing recreational fishing opportunities.
Where northern pike naturally occur in Alaska, they are highly valued as a subsistence and sport fish. In these waters, there are many other fish, such as whitefish, sheefish, suckers, Alaska blackfish, stickleback, and char. In their native range, pike are simply another member of the fish community, living in a balanced ecosystem with other fish species.
In Southcentral, illegally-introduced pike can change the balance of an aquatic ecosystem by preying on native fish while having few predators of their own. Some lakes and streams that once supported healthy numbers of silver salmon, Chinook salmon, and rainbow trout now have only small northern pike. This is how illegally-stocked pike have lessened the quality of fishing and threaten wild and stocked fisheries in Southcentral Alaska
What is 'illegal stocking'?
In order to protect our fisheries which bring millions of dollars each year to Alaskans, the State of Alaska has a very cautious fish stocking policy. According to state regulation 5 AAC 41.005, NO LIVE FISH or fish eggs may be transported, possessed, exported, OR RELEASED INTO THE WATERS OF THE STATE without a special permit issued by the Commissioner of ADF&G.
This means you cannot put live fish, even "minnows", in a bucket and take them home because you are possessing and transporting live fish without a permit. You certainly cannot take fish, including pike, from one waterway and "seed" them into another. It is illegal (Class A misdemeanor) and can cause major problems. This applies to all aquatic organisms.
Northern pike are now in Southcentral because of illegal introductions. Northern pike were first introduced to Bulchitna Lake in the Yentna River drainage in the 1950s. Since then, they spread to open systems and dispersed on their own. Through a combination of this dispersal and many more illegal introductions, invasive pike are now found in over 130 water bodies in the Mat-Su Valley, Anchorage, and the Kenai Peninsula
How you can help
- Report illegal stocking immediately to your local ADF&G office, or to Fish and Wildlife Safeguard at 1-800-478-3377.
- Do not transport live fish, especially northern pike, from one water body to another.
- Keep all the pike you catch in Southcentral Alaska (be sure to check the fishing regulations). Brochure: How to fish for & fillet pike, recipes (PDF)
- Attend ADF&G Advisory Committee meetings, and other public fisheries meetings. Advisory Committees are located in nearly every Southcentral Alaska community. Advisory Committees make proposals to the Alaska Board of Fisheries, many of which have become fishing regulations.
