SKU# OK142210E
2015 $20 Northern Pike 1 oz Pure Silver Proof Coin with Edge Lettering
Second Coin in the "North American Sportfish” Series - All four coins sold-out very quickly at the Mint!
Specifications
Finish: proof
Composition: silver 99.99% pure
Weight: 31.39 grams (1 troy oz.)
Diameter: 38 mm
Edge: lettered
Face Value: $20 (a legal tender Canadian coin)
Artists: Curtis Atwater (reverse), Susanna Blunt (obverse)
Description
The reverse of this stunning pure silver coin depicts a northern pike gliding through its native habitat. The intricate engraving makes this “lunker” appear to be swimming right out of the coin and toward the viewer. Multiple finishes add drama to the scene.
Special features:
- FEATURES EDGE LETTERING: Edge lettering lists the coin's metal weight and purity: "9999 Fine Silver 1 oz 9999 Argent pur 1 oz".
• A low mintage of only 6,500 makes this subscription especially exclusive.
• For our Canadian customers, this coin is GST/HST exempt.
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Did you know…*
- The northern pike (Esox lucius), is known simply as a pike in Britain, Ireland, most of Canada, and most parts of the USA. In the Upper Midwest of the USA and in Manitoba, Canada, it is commonly called simply the northern. Esox lucius is a species of carnivorous fish of the genus Esox (the pikes). They are typical of brackish and fresh waters of the Northern Hemisphere (i.e. holarctic in distribution).
- Within North America, northern pike populations are found in Illinois, North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, Michigan, Montana, Maryland, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Indiana, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Maine, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Vermont, Iowa, Utah, Texas, northern New Mexico and Arizona, Colorado, New York, Idaho, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario and Québec (pike are rare in British Columbia and east coast provinces), Alaska, the Ohio Valley, the upper Mississippi River and its tributaries, the Great Lakes Basin and surrounding states, Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, Colorado, and Oklahoma. They are also stocked in, or have been introduced to, some western lakes and reservoirs for sport fishing, although some fisheries managers believe this practice often threatens other species of fish such as bass, trout, and salmon, causing government agencies to attempt to exterminate the pike by poisoning lakes.
- Pike grow to a relatively large size: the average length is about 70 - 120 cm (28–47 in). Even so, lengths of up to 150 cm (59 in) and weights of 25 kg (55 lb) occur, but are very rare. The heaviest specimen known so far was caught in 1983 at an abandoned stone quarry in Germany, where the species is called Hecht. This specimen was 147 cm (58 in) long and weighed 31 kg (68 lb). The longest pike ever recorded and confirmed was 152 cm (60 in) long and weighed 28 kg (62 lb). A pike of 60.5 in (154 cm) was caught and released in May 2004 in Apisko Lake, Manitoba. Historic reports of giant pike, caught in nets in Ireland in the late 19th century, of 41–42 kg (90–93 lb) with a length of 173–175 cm (67–68 in), were researched by Fred Buller and published in The Domesday Book of Mammoth Pike. Neither Britain nor Ireland has managed to produce much in the way of giant pike in the last 50 years, so substantial doubt exists surrounding those earlier claims. Currently, the IGFA recognizes a 25 kg (55 lb) pike caught by Lothar Louis in Lake of Greffern, Germany, on 16 October 1986, as the all-tackle world-record northern pike.
- Northern pike are most often olive green, shading from yellow to white along the belly. The flank is marked with short, light bar-like spots and a few to many dark spots on the fins. Sometimes, the fins are reddish. Younger pike have yellow stripes along a green body; later, the stripes divide into light spots and the body turns from green to olive green. The lower half of the gill cover lacks scales and it has large sensory pores on its headand on the underside of its lower jaw which are part of the lateral line system. Unlike the similar-looking and closely related muskellunge, the northern pike has light markings on a dark body background and fewer than six sensory pores on the underside of each side of the lower jaw.
- A hybrid between northern pike and muskellunge is known as a tiger muskellunge (Esox masquinongy × lucius or Esox lucius × masquinongy,depending on the sex of each of the contributing species). In the hybrids, the males are invariably sterile, while females are often fertile, and may back-cross with the parent species. Another form of northern pike, the silver pike, is not a subspecies but rather a mutation that occurs in scattered populations. Silver pike, sometimes called silver muskellunge, lack the rows of spots and appear silver, white, or silvery-blue in color. When ill, silver pike have been known to display a somewhat purplish hue; long illness is also the most common cause of male sterility.
- Pike are found in sluggish streams and shallow, weedy places in lakes, as well as in cold, clear, rocky waters. They are typical ambush predators; they lie in wait for prey, holding perfectly still for long periods, and then exhibit remarkable acceleration as they strike. In short, they inhabit any water body that contains fish, but suitable places for spawning are essential for their numbers. Because of their cannibalistic nature, young pike need places where they can take shelter between plants so they are not eaten. In both cases, rich submerged vegetation is needed. Pike are seldom found in brackish water, except for the Baltic Sea area. They seem to prefer water with less turbidity, but that is probably related to their dependence on the presence of vegetation and not to their being sight hunters.
- In Italy, the newly identified species Esox cisalpinus ("southern pike") was long thought to be a color variation of the northern pike, but was in 2011 announced to be a species of its own.
* Source: Wikipedia
Packaging:
Each coin is encapsulated and presented in a Royal Canadian Mint branded maroon clamshell case lined with flock. It is also protected by a custom beauty box featuring a full-color image of a northern pike.
Shipping & Handling
Fast, free shipping & handling to all U.S. addresses via USPS First Class Mail. USPS Priority Mail and Priority Mail Express are also available for an additional charge.
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