Walleye fishermen are a breed of their own. They may go out on weekend and catch a ton of those Walleyes. Yet next weekend or the next fishing trip to Canada - everything is exactly the same and yet they come back after a full day or evening or fishing empty handed. Walleye fish can bit like crazy one day, and then disappear almost invisibly over the next fortnight. For no apparent reason what so ever. And it’s to the fishing gods. Once gone - these Walleye fish - these wonderful Walleye fish - nothing but nothing can bring them back or change their determined and wily brains. Not for love, not for money, not for experience on the fishing trails of life. Nothing it seems will bring back Walleye fish when they decide not to prevail.
But, in spite of, or perhaps for these very reasons, of their unpredictable or even elusive behaviors, walleyes rank among the most popular of game fish - whether it is in the northern US states such as Minnesota, North Dakota or Wisconsin or up in Ontario or Manitoba Canada. Some fisherman or anglers choose walleye fish and fishing themselves for the challenge alone. It can be said by less dedicated or avid fisherman that it is their choice of fishes mainly because walleye fillets make for ultra prime table fare.
Walleye fish have become more widespread geographically not only because of their inherent difficulty as a caught fish but also as a result of widespread fish stocking programs they are now found in almost every state and province. It has even been tried and attempted to introduce walleyes outside North America. Such are the lure of these wonderful Walleye game fish and the challenges of Walleye fishing.
Two subspecies of walleyes have been identified in North America: the yellow walleye and the blue walleye or blue pike. The blue Walleye or blue pike species is extinct currently. All that remains to fish in the wild are the yellow walleye species. These are commonly referred to simply as “Walleye”. Since it is the only type of Walleye fish still around for anglers to go after and pursue.
In terms of coloration and coloration yellow walleyes usually have an olive-green back, golden sides and a white belly. Distinctive markings include a milky-white tip on the lower lobe of the tail and a black blotch at the rear base of the spiny dorsal fin.
In many waters, fishermen mistake the walleye for its close relative - the Auger fish. To tell the two apart it is wise to know that Saugers have a distinctly different coloration and do not grow anywhere near as large as walleye fish. To further complicate matters, walleyes and saugers sometimes mingle and hybridize, producing an offspring, who has named or nicknamed “saugeye”. These saugeye fish can be said to appear with characteristics, colorations and markings intermediate between each of the two parent fish - walleye fish and sauger fish. Luckily walleye and their close relatives - the sauger fish, have no other North American relatives. However, walleyes are closely related to the European zander fish, or pike-perch. It can be said that in comparison the two look remarkably similar but that walleyes distribute their eggs are random while their close relatives - while zander fish are nest builders.
The walleye’s common names lead to much confusion among fisherman - even avid experienced anglers. In much of Canada, walleyes are called pickerel, jackfish or Dore, the French name for the species. In the United States they are often called “Walleyed Pike”. But then again that name is a misnomer because Walleyes belong not to the pike family but instead to the perch fish family.
However no matter what a walleye is a walleye fish and no matter what a bad day spent trying to catch those elusive walleyes is always better than the best day spent at the office back in the city.
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