This is the range of the northern pike.
How is it a freshwater fish can live on two different continents an ocean apart and not have evolved?
I know in Britain they were introduced for sport fishing in the 19th century, but there's no way they covered all of Asia like that.
>but there's no way they covered all of Asia like that.
think again.
here's the range of the goldfish.
I don't know, but America and Europe separated less than 100 million years ago.
>>1996331
goldfish were introduced in bags and stuff, put in ponds etc. Pike are slow breeding and are big
>>1996331
also, the blue means native, red means invasive.
>>1996335
>goldfish are small.
>>1996337
they can be transported while small. I don't think you can introduce pike fingerlings in a random lake and they'd survive
>>1996338
You wouldn't think you could dump tiny carnival goldfish into a lake and they'd survive and go on to breed and outcompete native fish but here we are. Life, uhh... finds a way.
>>1996327
>How is it a freshwater fish can live on two different continents an ocean apart
those continents almost touch at Alaska.
and it's not like most freshwater fish can't survive a few years in saltwater.
>>1996342
They were artificially introduced in alaska i think
>>1996351
you think wrong.
>>1996342
>and it's not like most freshwater fish can't survive a few years in saltwater.
yeah but pike are ambush predators, they hide in weeds and strike out at fish or frogs or whatever swimming by. They're not the kind of predator that can cruise through the water and attack other fish. They can't concievably swim across the Bering straight for a year without anything to eat
>>1996356
>They can't concievably swim across the Bering straight for a year without anything to eat
there wasn't always an ocean there.
but even if there was, they have no trouble finding food.
being an ambush predator most of the time doesn't mean they can't hunt when they need to.
that's a childish way of looking at nature.
there is also the thing where birds eat fish and shit out still viable eggs.
>>1996338
>they can be transported while small.
that applies to most fish.
>>1996367
really?
>>1996367
no they just carry them around on their feet sometimes.
fish eggs are pretty sticky you know.
>>1996396
>>1996399
>>1996327
Those two continents used to be in contact. They drifted apart. In North America, during a long separation of the Lucius population into northern and southern cohorts, allopatric evolution of the southern cohort produced the Muskellunge, which is only found natively in the Mississippi valley and Great Lakes basin.
tl;dr >they did evolve
>>1996396
they don't survive that
>inb4 stupid argument
try it
>inb4 "hurr durr i'm an expert in ichthyology and know what i'm talking about"
We all know you don't
>>1996367
you're thinking of seeds
>>1996469
>they don't survive that
of course they do.
five minutes on google would show you that he's correct.
During the pleistocene glaciation, which is the period of pike fossils found in Lake Michigan's basin, abundant fresh water refugia circled the North Pole. Additionally, Esox Lucius is frequently found in brackish waters, like the modern day Baltic, so there is no reaason to suppose that Esox l. was not in the much less saline pleistocene Arctic ocean, which was also freshened further by melting glaciers at the end of this period, offering ample time for multiple migrations from Eurasia to North America if they weren't there already (but which they were - see fossil record).
After glaciation, the population got separated.
Lucius, btw, has a common ancient ancestor with the Amur pike. The chain pickerel is another later southern cousin, and evolutionary descendant.
You've actually picked one of the best examples of allopatric speciation there is, OP.
>>1996483
sure, buddy
>>1996531
>>1996463
Another Fun Fact. The Tiger Muskie, the offspring of a Northern Pike and a Muskellunge, is a sterile hybrid. In Idaho, wildlife officials have used them to clear out invasive german brown trout from alpine lakes. They simply put in the Tiger Muskie, and it will literally eat an alpine lake clean, then die when it runs out of food. Then they restock the lake with native fish.
>>1996729
Females are often fertile. Haldane's Rule.
>>1996729
In Minneapolis it is possible to catch tiger muskies in the middle of downtown during rush hour. Based MN.
