by paul » Wed May 20, 2009 9:58 pm
Muskies require specific habitats and don't thrive all over the country. They're also big predators and while they'd be able to adapt to a lot more lakes, they're big predators and you wouldn't want a muskie population in a prime trout water. In the best muskie lakes they usually reach a population of around one adult per acre, so compared to other species they're really scarce.
Northern pike will reach much higher populations than muskies. In lakes that have both species the muskies tend to be even more rare since the pike spawn earlier in the spring, which enables young pike to feed on the newly hatched muskies.
Besides being few in number, muskies are tough to catch because they're notoriously selective. They're famous for following a lure to the boat without ever striking, or taking repeated casts and a figure-eight with the lure at the side of the boat to trigger a strike. They're fewer in number than pike and other species in the game, too, and you'll probably have some follows too.
Paul