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Steve McComas: Summer of 2024 brings big surprises on some Minnesota lakes

Why the jumbo bluegills? The mouth width of predator fish dictates the size of prey they can ingest. Piscivores are pretty good at knowing what they can handle. But sometimes they misjudge, as was the case with this northern pike. Small pike in Villard Lake in Pope County will ingest small bluegills, leaving the survivors to grow to a healthy size. (Photos courtesy of Steve McComas)

Here’s a mystery involving a single lake with two plant conditions.
Pike Lake in Scott County, Minn., presented a huge surprise during the summer of 2024. It’s a 50-acre lake with two basins separated by a shallow channel. Prior to my field work there, I didn’t know much about the lake.

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