Analysis of Northern Pike Farming Technology and Market Prospects

Northern pike, also known as the "Soviet rocket," has an elongated body that can reach 137 cm, with a pointed snout. It is mainly distributed in the freshwater basins of North America, Europe, and the Asian continent, and in China it is a **endemic fish species. Northern pike has long been known as the "soft gold among fish"; its flesh is delicious and tender with few bones, making it a delicacy on the dining table. However, the current yield of northern pike is very low, and as a carnivorous fish, northern pike is also not easy to farm. Therefore, it is necessary to gain a deep understanding of its living habits and farming methods before deciding whether to farm it. Below, Qinnong Web introduces the farming methods and farming prospects of northern pike for everyone's reference.

I. Living Habits

The growth environment of northern pike is found in freshwater lakes and rivers in middle and high latitude zones. It is a cold-water fish, with an optimum growth temperature of 22°C-26°C. At the fry stage, it feeds on rotifers, small cladocerans, copepods, and other zooplankton, and once slightly larger it preys on other fish. When food is insufficient, it will cannibalize its own kind. It is a large, ferocious carnivorous fish. In natural water bodies, the largest individual can reach a body weight of 40 kg. Young fish move in groups, while adult fish disperse to seek food. They move swiftly and agilely, and often inhabit areas among aquatic plants.

II. Fry Rearing

When northern pike first hatches from the membrane, the larva is 8.5-9 mm long, and by the time the yolk sac is completely absorbed, it is 11-14 mm, at which point it can be transferred to the fry rearing stage.

1. Cage rearing: The cage size is 1×1 m, with a depth of 0.3 m. The cage is framed with wooden boards, and the bottom is sealed with 40-mesh netting. The cage can be placed in a large pond, requiring the pond water to be fresh with high dissolved oxygen; it can also be placed in a large cement pool, requiring the pool water to flow slightly and maintain high dissolved oxygen. The stocking density is 1000-1500 fish/sq m. Feed zooplankton such as rotifers, small cladocerans, and copepods as feed, while also feeding 1-2 day post-hatch dace fry as bait. Feed 4 times a day, and the amount fed each time should not be too much; 3-5 feed fish per fry is appropriate. If northern pike fry eat too much, it can easily cause death, so when feeding feed fish each time, observe carefully to prevent overfeeding. After about 10 days of rearing, the fry can grow to 3 cm, at which point they should be promptly divided into separate cages and thinned.

2. Cement pool rearing: The cement pool has a water surface area of 10×60 sq m and a pool depth of 0.5 sq m. The stocking density per sq m is 100-150 fish. Feed small zooplankton or newly hatched fry of other fish, such as dace. For cement pool rearing, adjust and change the water in time to ensure high dissolved oxygen in the water body, while also ensuring sufficient feed. When the fish reaches a body length of 4-7 cm, if feed is insufficient, cannibalism will occur, so fry with a body length of 3-5 cm must be moved to large ponds and thinned for adult fish farming.

3. Pond rearing: The pond area is about 1-3 mu, with a water depth of 1-1.5 m, and the water should preferably allow gravity irrigation and drainage. 15 days before stocking the fry, use 150 kg of quicklime per mu to clear and disinfect the pond, and apply 250-300 kg of manure to cultivate sufficient zooplankton as the first feed. 3 days before stocking the fry, use 2-3 kg of soybean-made soybean milk per mu to splash the pond, so as to ensure there is enough biological feed for the feed fish to eat. 1 day before stocking the fish, stock 200,000-300,000 dace fry per mu as feed fish for the northern pike fry. Stock 20,000-30,000 northern pike fry per mu. After stocking, feed once every two days, using soybean milk as feed for the feed fish, using 2-3 kg of soybeans per mu. When the fry grow to a body length of 4.5 cm, promptly seine and thin them and transfer them to adult fish ponds for farming.

III. Adult Fish Farming

1. Pond conditions: Area of 5-8 mu, water depth of 2 m, sufficient water source, gravity irrigation and drainage, ensuring the water temperature can be lowered in high-temperature seasons. At the same time, place water hyacinth and similar plants on the pond surface for shade, and it is best to plant aquatic plants such as fir seedlings in the pond as hidden places to prevent cannibalism. 2. Prepare feed: Before the northern pike fry are stocked in the pond, prepare sufficient palatable feed fish. At a body length of 5 cm, they can eat feed fish of about 6 "zhao." Generally, in-pond cultivation is used, that is, disinfect before stocking, fertilize to cultivate feed fish, and when the feed fish grow to 5-6 "zhao," stock 5 cm northern pike fry at 1000 fish per mu.

3. Grow-out management measures: As northern pike grow, the palatable size and quantity of feed fish required also continuously increase, so feeding must be grasped in time. At the same time, seine once a month to separate large and small sizes and reduce cannibalism. Under sufficient feed conditions, fry of the current year can reach 1 kg by the end of December, reaching market size.

IV. Disease Prevention and Control

Northern pike has strong adaptability to the environment and very few diseases. If bacterial gill rot occurs, 0.3 micrograms of Yochlor or 0.3 micrograms of dibromohydantoin can be splashed over the whole pond, once a day for two consecutive days, with very ideal results. At the same time, during high-temperature seasons, disinfect once every 15 days with 0.2 micrograms of Yochlor, and also pay attention to injecting stream water or river water into the pond or pool to keep the water quality clear and the water temperature cool, which is more conducive to its growth.

V. Price of Northern Pike

Northern pike has very delicious flesh and good taste, making it a rare delicacy. Therefore, the price of northern pike is somewhat more expensive than other fish. In the ** region, the price is about 160 yuan per kg. Specific prices may vary by region, but compared with most fish on the market, it is still somewhat higher.

VI. Problems Faced in Farming

As the saying goes, things are precious when they are rare. One reason the price of northern pike is relatively high is that the yield of this fish is low. So what are the reasons that lead to the low yield of northern pike?

The first is that northern pike has very high environmental requirements. The water temperature of its living environment must be low, there must be abundant aquatic plants, the water quality must be excellent, and the water environment must be unpolluted.

The second is factors of northern pike itself. Northern pike itself does not have strong reproductive capacity, its growth rate is very slow, and the number it reproduces is also small.

Another is the influence of biological factors. Northern pike is a carnivorous fish, and its low fish output is also due to the short food chain. According to reports, four mu of land can produce northern pike from only one mu, because three mu must be used to raise feed fish, which shows how high the feeding cost of northern pike is.

Finally, there is the influence of other factors, such as severe environmental pollution now, climate warming, and so on. Changes in these factors are all unsuitable for the production of northern pike.

After introducing so much knowledge about northern pike, I wonder whether everyone is interested in farming this high-quality economic fish? At present, although large-scale farming of northern pike has been achieved, the technology is still not very mature, especially in southern regions. It is recommended that farmers with farming experience try it again, otherwise it is easy to suffer losses.