Video shows northern Ontario angler catching a pike just as a 50-inch muskie eats the pike

A Killarney-area angler who was ice fishing recently got a big surprise when he was pulling up a northern pike.

Jerry Burke, one of the owners of Mill Lake Lodge, said he had a 20-inch pike on his line when it was grabbed by a 50-inch muskie.

"I was fishing pike because muskie is out of season," Burke told CTV News in a message.

"The muskie was 50 inches long and was released with the pike still in its mouth."

He caught the event on video when he was fishing Thursday on Georgian Bay.

"(It was) right out front of my cabin," Burke said, adding he uses lamprey eel as bait.

He said he releases all the big fish he catches.

The Ministry of Northern Development, Mines, Natural Resources and Forestry said in a statement that, while live lamprey may not be possessed or used as bait for fishing, dead lamprey may be used as bait in Georgian Bay.

"It is important to note that not all lamprey in Ontario are invasive, in fact there are five different species of lamprey in Ontario, and all but the Sea lamprey are native," the statement said.

"Also, two of Ontario’s lamprey species (silver lamprey and Northern brook lamprey) are provincially rare and listed as Special Concern and are discouraged from being used as dead bait. American eels, which may be confused with lamprey, are considered endangered in Ontario and can not possessed or be used as bait regardless of whether they are dead or alive."

For more information on bait and for a list of permitted baitfish, click here.