Grass pickerel (Esox americanus vermiculatus) COSEWIC assessment and status report: chapter 6

Distribution

Global range

The natural distribution of the grass pickerel (Figure 2) is largely restricted to the west of the Appalachian Mountains, in the systems of the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River (Crossman 1980). It extends from the St. Lawrence River system near Montreal, Quebec, through northwestern New York State, including the Finger Lakes, Lake Champlain and Adirondacks Park, through western Pennsylvania, southwest through western Kentucky to the northwestern corner of Alabama (Tennessee River), south through western Mississippi to Louisiana, west to the Brazos River in Texas, northward through southeastern Oklahoma, widespread in Arkansas, Missouri, eastern Iowa, southeastern Minnesota and southwestern Wisconsin, across Illinois, Indiana, southern Michigan, to southern Ontario. There is an isolated area of distribution in northcentral Nebraska, and in central northern Wisconsin. The northern limit of distribution is Rice Creek of the Manitowish River System, Vilas Co. (46°07'N, 89°45'W), central north Wisconsin (Serns and McKnight 1977). These northern Wisconsin populations may exist as a result of introductions, or they could be a glacial relict associated with the unglaciated area of Wisconsin.

Successful introduced populations exist in western New York (NY), Maryland (MD), western Pennsylvania (PA), Washington (WA), Utah (UT), Colorado (CO) and Idaho (ID). It was introduced in California (CA) and later extirpated (Buss 1963, Wydoski and Whitney 1979, Crossman 1980, Fuller et al. 1999). Hybridization is common where one of the two pickerels occurs in waters inhabited by the chain pickerel (Raney 1955, Crossman and Buss 1965) or, to a lesser extent, the northern pike (Serns and McKnight 1977).


Figure 2. North American (global) distribution.

Figure 2. North American (global) distribution.


The grass pickerel and the chain pickerel occur in the same habitats in many states from Missouri southward.

Canadian range

As presently known from extensive collecting, the Canadian range (Figure 3), is interrupted and represented by several populations somewhat concentrated in separated areas. In Quebec, Cuerrier (1944) first recorded the species at Île Perrot at the mouth of the Ottawa River. The grass pickerel is currently known in three sections of the St. Lawrence River; Lake St-François (in 1941), a questionable record; a section of the river immediately downstream of Lake St-François, Coteau du lac (in 1970); and in Lake St-Louis including Île Perrot, Ruisseau Saint-Jean, and Lachine (1941-1988) [P. Dumont, Ministère des Ressources naturelles et de la Faune, Quebec; personal communication]. This includes a 1985 record extending the distribution downstream in Lac St-Louis to near Lachine. In 1994, the species was captured farther upstream in the nearby Ontario portion of Lake St. Francis. This suggests little movement since 1941, but possibly the establishment of newer populations. Pollution around Montreal has been suggested as a possible reason for the narrow gap (now Îles de Contrecoeur to Lac St-Louis near Lachine) between the territories of the two subspecies in Quebec. Mongeau et al. (1974) did not include a distribution point for the Rivière Châteauguay, as given earlier by Cuerrier et al. (1946).


Figure 3. Distribution of grass pickerel, Esox americanus vermiculatus, in Canada, indicating two time periods of collecting or reporting.

Figure 3. Distribution of grass pickerel, Esox americanus vermiculatus, in Canada, indicating two time periods of collecting or reporting.


The distribution continues upstream into Lake Ontario in shallow bays and small streams with a concentration in the tributaries to Lake Ontario and the St. Lawrence River from Brockville to Gananoque. It continues as far west as western Quinte waters near Deseronto, Ontario. Extensive collecting has failed to locate the grass pickerel in the Canadian tributaries to Lake Ontario from Presqu'ile Park west of the Bay of Quinte, to Hamilton. There is a population in the upper reaches of Twenty Mile Creek, a tributary of Lake Ontario, southeast of Hamilton. As a result of barriers to upstream movement from Lake Ontario, it would seem likely that the origin of that population is a result of some past headwater contact with that of the nearby Grand River, a tributary of Lake Erie. The grass pickerel is known from virtually all of the streams tributary to the Upper Niagara and Welland rivers south to the area of Fort Erie, Ontario. On the north shore of Lake Erie, populations occur (or occurred) in the Grand River, Long Point area, and Point Pelee. In spite of the existence of suitable waters in the intervening areas, no records exist there. Populations occur in the upper portion of Lake St. Clair (Walpole Island), and tributaries of Lake St. Clair: the Sydenham River, Little Bear Creek and Maxwell Creek. They are found in the Lake Huron watershed, near Grand Bend, Ontario (Old Ausable Channel, the former river bed of the Ausable River now a slough that drains into “The Cut” of the Ausable River). 

Inland populations occur in the Severn River system in Kahshe Lake, Bass Lake and Gartersnake Creek. In 1972, the species was reported from Lake Couchiching (the northern extension of Lake Simcoe) and Hoaglands Marsh (Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources, field identification), but these records cannot be verified.

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