Walleye

Description

Walleyes are largely olive and gold in color, with the dorsal side olive grading into a golden hue on the flanks. Five darker saddles break the pattern, and the belly is white. The mouth is large and armed with many sharp teeth; the first dorsal and anal fins are spinous, as is the operculum. Walleyes are distinguished from the sauger by white coloration on the lower lobe of the caudal fin, which the sauger lacks, and by the absence of rows of black dots on the dorsals and caudal fin.

They grow to about 80 cm in length and weigh up to about 9 kg, with a maximum recorded size of 107 cm and 13 kg. Southern populations often grow faster and larger, and females generally grow larger than males. Walleyes may live for decades; the maximum recorded age is 29 years, though in heavily fished populations few exceed five or six years. Typical caught size is 30 to 50 cm.

The relationship between length and weight follows the equation W = cL^b, with b = 3.180 and c = 0.000005337 (cm and kg), so a 50 cm walleye weighs about 1.5 kg and a 60 cm walleye about 2.5 kg.

Reproduction

Male walleyes typically reach sexual maturity between ages three and four, while females usually take about a year longer. In late winter or early spring, adults move to tributary streams to deposit eggs over gravel and rock, though some populations spawn on sand or vegetation, and open-water reef or shoal-spawning groups also exist. Spawning happens when water temperatures are between 6 and 10 degrees Celsius. A large female may produce up to 500,000 eggs, which are slightly sticky and settle into rock crevices; neither parent tends the eggs or young.

Incubation lasts from 12 to 30 days, depending on temperature. After hatching, the free-swimming embryos absorb a small yolk sac over roughly a week, then begin eating invertebrates like fly larvae and zooplankton. Between 40 and 60 days later, juveniles switch to a fish diet, and from then on both young and adults feed almost entirely on fish, often yellow perch or ciscoes, moving onto bars and shoals at night to hunt. They also consume crayfish, minnows, and leeches.

Fishing

Fishing for walleyes is regulated by most natural resource agencies, often using quotas and length limits to prevent overexploitation; for example, in Michigan walleyes shorter than 15 inches may not be legally kept. Walleyes have excellent visual acuity under low illumination, so they feed more at dawn and dusk, on cloudy or overcast days, and under choppy conditions. In darkly stained or turbid waters they tend to feed throughout the day. In spring and fall they are near shallower areas due to spawning grounds, and during higher winds they are often in shallower areas at about 6 feet deep; on calm spring days they are more often at the deep side of shoreline drop-offs at depths approaching 10 feet or more.

Walleyes are frequently caught while ice fishing. "Walleye chop" refers to rough water with winds of 10 to 25 km/h, indicating good fishing due to increased feeding activity. Night fishing with live bait can be very effective. The all-tackle world record is an 11.34 kg walleye caught by Mabry Harper in Old Hickory Lake, Tennessee, on 2 August 1960.

LeRoy Chiovitte holds the Minnesota state record for a 17 lb, 35.75 inch walleye caught on 13 May 1979 on the Seagull River.

Cultural aspects

In the Upper Midwest, walleye holds deep cultural importance as a food source. Minnesota made it the official state fish in 1965, and three towns—Garrison, Minnesota; Baudette, Minnesota; and Garrison, North Dakota—each boast a large walleye statue and claim the title "Walleye Capital of the World." Vermont named walleye pike its official state warm water fish in 2012. South Dakota followed in 1982, designating walleye as its state fish; though native to the state, it didn't become a popular food until the 1970s and 1980s, thanks to fishing tournaments.

Manitoba and Saskatchewan both recognize walleye as their official provincial fish, with Saskatchewan adopting it in 2015 after a public contest. In Winnipeg, the fish is called "pickerel" and is considered the city's most important local catch. The largest spearfishing-caught walleye on record weighed 13.3 pounds and was taken in 2014 from the South Saskatchewan River.

Did You Know?

• The name "walleye" comes from its pearlescent eyes caused by the reflective tapetum lucidum.
• The Garrison Dam National Fish Hatchery in North Dakota is the largest walleye hatchery in the world.
• The walleye was first formally described by American naturalist Samuel Latham Mitchill from Cayuga Lake near Ithaca, New York.