Northern Pike Teeth Facts That Will Surprise You

Have you ever caught a northern pike and saw the way northern pike teeth looked and wondered how many teeth do they really have? Well, northern pike can grow a huge amount of teeth and their mouth can fit up to seven hundred sharp teeth with most of them being small needle-like-sized teeth!

If you fish pike often then you’ve probably heard stories of pike shedding their teeth and growing them back once a year but that’s not true and I go more in-depth on this topic as to why that is.

In this article, I talk about pike biting through braided line and fluorocarbon line and which one is better for catching pike along with the best pike spoon colors to use so that they can bite more often. Also about how big pike teeth are, and even how many teeth they have.

By end of this article, you will learn about northern pike teeth facts and helpful tips to use when fishing for northern pike.

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Northern Pike Teeth Facts

How Many Teeth Do Pike Have?

A pike can have around three hundred to seven hundred teeth which is an incredible amount of teeth for one fish to have. The upper roof of the mouth is where you will find most of the pike’s teeth in three rows of pads which look like small needles and are about 0.2 to 0.4 inches in length.

Although the roof of the mouth has smaller-sized teeth more than ninety percent of them are there which means that there are hundreds of small teeth on the pads that will hold its prey tight.

When a pike bites, its upper teeth aren’t going to let its prey get away with all the little needle-like teeth sticking into the fish. The bottom row of the teeth also has a row of needle-like teeth on the front along with teeth that are bigger in size than the teeth on the roof of the pike’s mouth and they can grow up to one inch long so they’re quite sharp and deadly.

Overall pike have a unique set of teeth that work together to keep their food from escaping, the top needle-looking teeth will help grip their prey tightly while the bottom teeth deal the killing blow to their prey with their long sharp teeth.

How Big Are Pike Teeth?

So now that you know that pike have three hundred to seven hundred teeth how big are they really to be able to have that many teeth in their mouth? Well, most of the pike teeth are small and have an average length of 0.2 to 0.4 inches long and the biggest sized teeth they have are one inch in length.

Their biggest teeth are mainly located on their lower jaw which means that only a small amount of their teeth get to grow up to one inch long and the rest of the other teeth grow a little less than half of that size.

What Do Northern Pike Bite On?

Northern pike bite on highly visible lures so if you’re looking for one of the best pike lures to fish with in the summer then you’re going to want a lure that can create rattling sounds and also that disrupts water. Along with that the lure or spoon should be vibrant colored and easy to see like a chartreuse, silver-white, orange, or even a yellow-colored lure.

The type of lure that I recommend to use for fishing northern pike is a topwater hard lure with a rotating tail that makes vibrations throughout the water which attract pike extremely often. Also, spoons are an excellent choice for attracting pike since they are easy for pike to spot and light reflective.

When Do Pike Bite?

Pike bite the most during the morning around two hours of the sun setting and later on in the afternoon. Fishing during the day for pike is going to be the best chance for you at catching them because they need to see their prey to hunt. They are fish that hunt by sight mainly so fishing at night for them isn’t a good idea since that’s when they’re the least active.

Do Northern Pike Shed Their Teeth?

No northern pike don’t shed their teeth it is a made-up old folk tale that someone probably made up a long time ago for an excuse of having a bad day and not being able to catch any northern pike. Although there are a lot of fishers that believe that northern pike lose their teeth and grow them back each year there are also a lot of them that don’t.

Some fishers say that northern pike shed their teeth during the summer and the winter season each year but it has not been confirmed to be true by scientific data. On top of that most fishers actually believe the opposite, they don’t think that northern pike shed their teeth making the claim even harder to believe.

Also, there is scientific data and research from a study made in lake Ontario that has already confirmed that northern pike don’t shed their teeth each year.

During the summer there are a lot of baitfish for pike to feed on and won’t go for the bite when they see your lure cause they’re probably full and not hungry. And in the winter they swim deeper down which makes them harder to catch so maybe that’s why some people think that pike shed their teeth in those two seasons.

Do Northern Pike Lose Their Teeth?

Even though pike do not shed their teeth they can still lose them. If a pike bites a bone quite hard a tooth could be lost or if it’s hunting a fish with thick scales some teeth could get injured and fall off. When a pike’s teeth fall off it can still grow back so it’s not that bad when a pike loses their teeth.

Can Pike Bite Through Braided Line?

Yes, pike can bite through braided line because its abrasion resistance is low that’s why I always recommend you use fluorocarbon line as a leader line when your fishing pike since its abrasion resistance is much higher compared to braided line so its less likely for a pike to bite through it.

This doesn’t make braid line bad to use for pike fishing in any way. I like to use it as my mainline just as many other fishers do, but I tie it to an eighty-pound test fluorocarbon leader line for that added toughness and less visibility that helps increase my chances for a pike to strike.

If you don’t have any fluorocarbon line and happen to have a wire leader line laying around then that also makes an excellent leader line to use for catching pike.

Can Pike Bite Through Fluorocarbon?

Yes, pike can bite through fluorocarbon line but it will have a much harder time biting through it with a sixty to eighty-pound test line which is the most common pound test line that fishers use when their targeting pike.

When it comes to fishing for pike with a fluorocarbon line leader I prefer using an eighty-pound test fluorocarbon line for that extra line strength so that pike won’t be able to tear through it as easy.

Fluorocarbon line is great when you’re trying to catch pike more often it’s a clear line that looks invisible so pike won’t get scared away when it sees it and will go for the bite immediately.

At the end of the day fishing pike often can cause wear and tear to your line over time since their teeth are sharp. With each pike bite the abrasion resistance of your line will get reduced making it easier for pike to bite through it, so always check your line every now and then when your fishing for pike.

What Pound Line For Pike?

If you’re using braided line then you will want to use a thirty to forty-pound test braid line. I use the forty-pound test braid line when I go out fishing for pike as my mainline along with an eighty-pound test fluorocarbon line as a leader. As for monofilament, a fifteen to twenty-pound test monofilament line will get the job done.

Depending on the type of line your using is going to depend on what pound test line you use so make sure you never get the pound test size of braided and monofilament lines mixed up with each other.

Pike Facts And Frequently Asked Questions:

How Fast Do Northern Pike Grow And How Big Do Pike Get?

Northern pike grow very fast it takes four to five years for a male pike to fully mature into an adult and for a female pike, it can take one year more making it five to six years. At around that age the northern pike average weight is two to three pounds and are around twenty-five inches long.

Each year after they mature they gain around half a pound and one and a half inches till they hit ten years. Once their ten years old they gain around two pounds a year and get one inch longer.

When they turn seven-teen the northern pike start gaining even more weight per year increasing its weight growth to three pounds per year and the length stays at around one inch of growth per year. They can grow up to fifty inches long and weigh more than sixty pounds.

What Do Baby Northern Pike Eat?

Baby northern pike eat small guppies, shiners, livebearers, minnows, endlers, and small insects.

What Does Northern Pike Eat?

Northern pike eat many types of things from ducks to birds, frogs, squirrels, bass, perch, snakes, walleye, crappie they are aggressive fish that will even eat small pike and will pretty much eat anything that moves near them that is half their size since its a territorial fish. 

Where To Find Northern Pike?

You can find northern pike in flats, rivers, canals, bays, and lakes. The main thing to look out for when your trying to find northern pike on a river bed or a lake is going to be structure. Northern pike hunt their prey by ambushing so that’s where you will find them waiting to strike and ambush while hiding near structure.

Overhanging trees are a good sign for northern pike activity cast near them because they are often found sitting under them. Also, marginal drop-offs where the bank slopes into deep water makes an incredible spot for finding them.

Anywhere that has structures from sunken logs to bridges can be an excellent location to cast in so be sure to do so when you see any. Most of the northern pike that I have caught has been from fishing in the crease line where the slow water meets fast water.

A stocked trout reservoir is a great spot to fish in if you’re looking to fish for big sized northern pike since theirs a high supply of trout for them to feed on. This is also perfect for pike since they don’t like to swim against fast water because they would have to use a lot of energy if they did. They will use slack water to their advantage and you will find pike sitting in slack water waiting for the right time to strike.

Do Pike Have Teeth?

Yes, pike do have teeth on both the top and the bottom of the mouth and have an average of three hundred to seven hundred teeth. If you ever catch a pike don’t stick your hand in its mouth because it has many sharp teeth.

In Conclusion

In conclusion, northern pike have a unique set of teeth that are quite sharp and deadly for their prey.

Now that you have learned all about northern pike teeth, go out there to fish for pike and see how fun they are to catch.