Abstract

Fifteen pike Esox lucius L. were radio tracked in the River Frome, UK, for between 8 and 25 months. Examination of the locations of seasonally determined cluster polygon home ranges, together with positional fixes recorded throughout the year, revealed that spatial behaviours could not be grouped into the simple ‘static’ and ‘mobile’ categories that had previously been proposed for the species. Rather, a continuum of spatial behaviours existed, from individuals that always remained within the same few hundred metres of river, to individuals that made repeated journeys over several kilometres on a broadly seasonal basis. Relocations were also observed, whereby pike moved to a distinctly different location to that which they had formerly occupied.