BANGOR DAILY NEWS • March 21, 2025
Moosehead Lake, one of Maine’s most important cold-water fisheries and home to native brook trout and landlocked salmon, already struggles with an increasing abundance of native lake trout plus invasive bass, yellow perch and white perch. But there is a new threat on the horizon: Northern pike. Pike compete with brook trout and salmon for food. Pike will eat anything it can fit in its mouth, including its own young. They could ruin the landlocked salmon and trout fishery, just as they destroyed a trophy salmon fishery at Long Pond in the Belgrade Lakes region. That would be devastating for Moosehead Lake, which draws thousands of people from around the world to its waters year-round for lake trout, salmon and brook trout fishing, supporting a multi-million-dollar local tourism economy.