what do you know about gators I dont

heres my info on why gators are getting touchy this time of the year whats yours–?? Im no expert when it comes to Gators because I dont eat them big buggers, but I do take a couple 4# for deep frying and spitting bones- Im no trophy hunter-I just want food and there darn good- I just dont like them taking all my tackle cause they out smart my attempts to get that big head in the hole and reach down to get them out with the jaws of life looking at my hand with no regets as how they can open up my hand with there jaws of life- but the tide is turning- as the season comes to opening ice- I have found it very true from many a year ago- Gators are getting a sore mouth-There teeth are getting loose, there gums are getting sore and touchy-
dont believe me?– you will in January- just look in there mouth!! Red gums, loose teeth, some seem to be missing? check out the food in the stomach– there still there but they have tooth aches coming- there looking for soft, easy kill, smaller food so it doesnt hurt there gums- some drop there teeth fast, some dont, thats just nature I guess
toss in your ideas why gators change baits, strike, just pull and release- I would like some info with your best thoughts–snap fizzzzzzzzzzzzzzz!!!

Gators loose there teeth or get soft mouths ever year in the La Crosse area, normally the end of January. It is this time of year I like to bait up with smelt.
First ice I find gators on the prowl in the shallows. With the WI regulations I like to bait up with a small gill or large shiner.

As far as spitting bones, I like to keep my pike at 32 – 36 inches (this might be 3 a year). I don’t remove the Y bones because I still think it is a waste. Don’t jump me people….if you are removing the Y bones, great I make my filets, baked, fried, broiled or whatever then pull them apart at the lateral line. The Y bones pop right out. I agree totally, they are darn good

Bret

I have to agree with bret, they are good food.And they are fun to catch.

One of my favorite fish to catch. Don’t get me wrong, I love walleyes….but they sure don’t bend a rod like a pike. Nothing like first ice, a shallow bay loaded with tip ups, and hungry pike. Want a trophy through the ice? 10-12 inch or bigger, sucker minnow on a tip up. Hard to find some that size and a bit spendy when you do. Take the sucker, shave some of the scales off the side of the body and trim the tail down so it cant pull too hard and trip the flag. You also have to add a rubber band to the post where the flag sits so it can’t be tripped so easy….Next step, wait, wait some more, then when you think that this doesn’ work, wait and try some more. You won’t get the small snakes doing this, but eventually you’ll get that trophy. Headed to Upper Red for the first time this Feb, can’t wait!!!

gators are good eatin!

They really loose their teeth?

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They really loose their teeth?

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Yes, they loose there teeth once a year but not all at one time.

Gator hunting is on eof my Favorite things to do! Nothing better than a bunch of your buddies out there on the ice tip up fishing and watching the flags fly.

I fish my tip ups with suckers. We cut the back fin off to give that wounded look. We also use stout rods with bait casters to get them on a rod and real. Some folks give us weird look when we are out the fighting one with a rod and real on the ice but it is the same set up we use for Lakers.

I have found that my favorite way to eat them is to boil them fillets and dip them in butter like lobster! Nothing compares……………

bret- how do you know that pike lose their teeth or get sore mouths around january? i have heard others say the same thing but have found sources that say that is a myth…i know they lose teeth when they eat some tough bait but im just wonderin if they actually do lose their teeth at certain times of the year

i found this on the minnesota DNR website:

What happens to the teeth of northern pike in winter? I have heard people say the fish lose their teeth in February and don’t bite as often on bait. Others have said that the teeth in some fish appear to be loose at this time of year.
John Berklich, Hibbing

There’s a long-standing belief, likely begun by ancient anglers in search of an excuse for their lousy luck, that northern pike lose teeth at certain times of the year. In fact, this is nothing but a fishy folk tale. According to DNR fish biologist Don Pereira, northerns may occasionally lose teeth in an unfortunate run-in with particularly tough prey or bait, but there’s no evidence they do so regularly. For more on northern pike, see “For the Love of Pike” (May-June 2003).

I beg to differ with that DNR report- I have proved it over and over each year to myself and customers- How does a nothern of any size bust all of his teeth out – they must be chewing on rocks all ice season to get rid of the 1″ rippers and pick on smaller rocks to grind off the upper roof of there mouth teeth?? why do Northerns prefer minnows in mid January through March (open the stomach up)? check the mouth you will find red gums, push down on them and you will find small sharp teeth coming in!! yes they may have a few rakers left here and there but not a mouth full of razors– isnt it true Northerns and Muskie like to hit from the side, hold and kill, then take it from the head–they cant kill them if they have no teeth, its hard to set a hook- I have skeletons of different size gators with only 2 rakers left, I have customers that have been showed that were non believers (each year)

I’ve heard both sides of this theory. That it is true and it isn’t.

Anyone have anything from a biologist on it?

I went to school for fish and wildlife management. I learned that it is a myth that pike lose all their teeth once a year, and I have never seen proof otherwise. Russ mentions skeletons of pike with only 2 rakers left, well, teeth are the first thing to fall out of a skull….take a look at bear or deer skulls for instance.

It’s an old-wive’s tale that probably isn’t worth debating.

the skulls I found were fresh laying side by side, there eyes hadnt even sunk in yet,nothing had even touched them- no teeth were broke off or hollow spots where the teeth should have been- I dried the heads and hung them in the cabin- if its a myth “Im a Believer” but I also know reality after years on the lake checking teeth, stomachs, etc- just check your northerns as you catch them threw the season and see if you see what I do then please report back here with your findings-

One of my friends going to school for fisheries at the U of W Is going to look into this for me. His first response was he does not believe that they do naturally like you or I do. We will see what the U of Wisconsin knows about Gators!!!

I bet you have also found during this period of time they prefer softer skinned bait’s such as suckers and smelt. At least that is my finding on local lakes and the river

I always suggest- get dead ciscoes, smelt, and shinners- if there in the are they will find you, the same with suckers stay a bit smaller but dont be afaird of trying a big one that moves- remember your only in 15′ of water in most spots

Did a search and this is what they gave me. It contradicts the whole winter thing.

Question:
“Why do pike’s gums swell up and why does the bite turn off when this happens to them. I still seem to catch a few but the action is really slow until their gums start to recede?” writes Nick.

Answer:
Firstly, it is a myth that pike shed their teeth all at once around the peak heat times of the season such as August. Pike do not shed their teeth all at once. Rather they shed them as they lose them, and it has been suggested that they are more susceptible to losing them in the warmer summer temperatures. The jaws, roof of the mouth, tongue, and gill rakers are all armed with numerous sharp teeth, that are constantly being replaced. It is the replacement of the gum-embedded teeth that is causing the swelling.

Temperature plays a huge role in the feeding of these fish. Most people don’t even realize how big a role it plays. Pike can literally stop feeding in the summer due to warmer temperatures and often do. Only the smaller pike will be caught in warmer temperatures, generally speaking.

If the fish are replacing numerous teeth at once and there is significant swelling, this adversely affects their feeding habits.

I could sure shoot holes in that report with that last couple lines of his statement- he retracted everything except his commitment of warm water- “They may loose there teeth and sometimes alot of them at once”- I think he better do an ice study from Jan-March

Russ says that 90% of gaters that he’s caught whether big or small after Jan 2 have no teeth at all.
If you don’t believe me call my customers or come up and check for yourself.
Good luck – see you on ice!

thats the biggest load of ____ Ive heard in along time, its a wives tale, pure and simple…. you ask why there only eating minnows in the winter? what else is there for em to eat in the winter? craws and frogs and everything else prevelant in there diet are taking a mud nap, not that hard to figure out

yea, i caught a pike in austin yesterday and looked in its mouth and it had all the teeth and gums where not red or swelled up…

by the way nice article in the startribune

what article was in the tribune

article on the monster slab’s on url featuring the petrowskie family. it’s yesterday’s edition, a full page on the back of the sports section of the star tribune. you can’t miss it. talk about free advertisement for J.P.

they were also in the rochester post bulliten on thursday the 8th