Fauna Journal Entry

Invasive Pike Survives Blast (April 4, 2003)

California wildlife experts blasted a shallow cove in the Sierra Nevadas with explosives in an effort to kill its unwanted population of northern pike. The tough, invasive predator fish is currently spawning in the area. The blast sent shock waves through the water with the hope the species could be wiped out before it spreads to more California waterways.

But wildlife officials say results of the blast have so far been disappointing. Very few dead pike have been recovered in the area and biologists say the explosions probably did not get the job done.

The northern pike was first discovered in California's Lake Davis in the northern Sierra Nevadas in 1994. Since then, wildlife officials have tried different ways to kill them off. They fish are extremely aggressive and can quickly dominate any "adopted" ecosystem, driving out many native species.

Wildlife officials have used poisons, nets, traps, hooks, and explosives to get rid of them but nothing has worked. Biologists fear the voracious fish will threaten the state's salmon population if they escape from the lake.