Michigan's smallest member of the pike family, rarely exceeding 12 inches. Dark olive with a chain-like or wavy lateral pattern. Short snout compared to northern pike. Found in dense, weedy shallows and slow streams. Not a target sport fish due to small size but interesting to encounter.
| Lake | County | Population | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Baseline Lake
377 acres
|
Livingston | Small -- usually caught incidentally in bass/pike habitat | |
|
Cass Lake
1,280 acres
|
Oakland | Small -- usually caught incidentally in bass/pike habitat | |
|
Lake Columbia
821 acres
|
Jackson | Small -- usually caught incidentally in bass/pike habitat | |
|
Magician Lake
755 acres
|
Cass | Small -- usually caught incidentally in bass/pike habitat | |
|
Ore Lake
233 acres
|
Livingston | Small -- usually caught incidentally in bass/pike habitat | |
|
Paw Paw Lake
1,000 acres
|
Van Buren | Small -- usually caught incidentally in bass/pike habitat | |
|
Portage Lake
800 acres
|
Washtenaw | Small -- usually caught incidentally in bass/pike habitat | |
|
Walled Lake
640 acres
|
Oakland | Small -- usually caught incidentally in bass/pike habitat |
No stocking records are on file for Grass Pickerel.
This is common for several reasons: this species may reproduce naturally and not require stocking (e.g. Largemouth Bass, Northern Pike), it may be managed under a different program not tracked here, or records may predate our database. For the most current data, check the Michigan DNR Stocking Database directly.