Southern pike
(Esox cisalpinus)

Classification

Species: Esox cisalpinus

General data

Scientific names: Southern pike
Habitat: Freshwater
Climate: Subtropical
Native: Europe
Introduced: Africa
Distribution: Tiber, Adige, Po River, Reno

Esox cisalpinus, the southern pike, is a species of freshwater fish known from central and northern Italy, southeastern France and Switzerland, and it might also occur in the western Balkans.

It has traditionally been considered a southern European variant of the widespread northern pike (Esox lucius), but was described as a separate species in 2011.

Like the northern pike, southern pike are an important species for recreational fisheries and for its role as a top predator in freshwater ecosystems.