Fun Walleye Fish Facts For Kids

Walleyes are a member of the perch family. The walleye is named after the transparent, opaque pigment found in their eyes known as tapetum lucidum. This pigment helps them to see in the dark. Walleye fish is a freshwater fish and an extremely popular popular game fish for the purpose of fishing in lakes. In terms of appearance, this freshwater fish is present in two major colors, green and olive complemented with a white belly. They are long and thin shaped fishes who have around five or more black colored bands on their back. There are two dorsal fins present on the body. Population of this species is mainly found in Great Lakes as well as lakes in the south of the Arctic, around the United States and Canada. Their habitat will be in a lake, open water or gravel reefs as there is plenty of prey available in these regions.

People stock lakes with the fish walleye and enjoy fishing them as a recreational activity. The diet of the walleye fish comprises primarily of yellow perch and other small fish. This species is native to Ohio River and Lake Erie. If you are interested in this species, then here are some interesting facts about these lake fishes who are very rarely found in brackish water. After reading about these facts about ice fish walleye, do read our other articles on longhorn cowfish facts and skate fish.

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What type of animal is a walleye?

A walleye is a type of fish. It is known to stay in the water and lay clutches of eggs. The walleyes are a type of perch and are similar to the yellow perch. They are native to the United States and Canada. Their natural habitat consists of freshwaters.

What class of animal does a walleye belong to?

Walleyes belong to the Actinopterygii class and are known as Sander Vitreus owing to the pigment in their eyes. This species is a member of the perch family and are also known as the yellow walleye to distinguish them from the yellow perch, who look similar. This species was native to lake Erie and Ohio River.

How many walleye fish are there in the world?

There is no exact figure of the total number of walleye fishes available in the world. However, the walleyes are the least concerned strata of the conservation status and therefore this species have a population that can sustain for many generations in various lakes like Lake Erie.

Where does a walleye fish live?

A walleye is found in the United States and Canada. These include lake Erie, the Great Lakes, the Saint Lawrence River, and the Mississippi river basin. This species known to generally inhabit freshwater lakes.

What is a walleye fish's habitat?

Walleyes are known to live in freshwaters like streams, rivers, and lakes. They can also be found in some waters with a little salinity. They can also be in smaller pools, estuaries, and backwaters.

Who do walleye fish live with?

They live in groups known as schools. They have not been known to depict any solitary behaviors and are known to stay in groups during their lifetime in a lake.

How long does a walleye fish live?

A walleye fish doesn’t live for that long and is known to live for a maximum duration of 240 months. The walleyes start eating smaller fish when they reach merely one or two months old.

How do they reproduce?

Walleyes tend to move into shallower freshwater streams or tributaries of rivers during the end of the wintertime. Here, they engage in group spawning where the females release their eggs, and then the males have to fertilize them to form a fry. After a gestation period of 12-30 days, the embryos come out of the eggs.

What is their conservation status?

The conservation status of the walleyes is of the least concern. Back in the year 1983, the walleyes were declared to be extinct by the department of natural resources. But now that they have a stable population, the status of this species has been shifted to that of least concern by the department of natural resources.

What do walleye fish look like?

Walleye fish has a gold or green body on the upper side. However, its lower side is largely white. The walleye is distinctive due to a few streaks of darker color on their upper body. The fish has sharp teeth in its mouth, which can be very hazardous to deal with. They have unique eyes with a reflective layer of pigment called tapetum lucidum. Since walleyes are nocturnal fish, this pigment allows them to see in dark and dim lighting.

How cute are they?

Walleyes are not very cute fish. With their glassy eyes and white, gold, or green scales, they don’t appear to be very colorful fish. Also, they are not hunted or admired for their beauty but their taste.

How do they communicate?

There haven’t been many instances of walleyes communicating with each other. They are pretty silent fish. However, during the occasions of mating in the breeding season, the walleye communicate with each other. The male tries to ask the female if she is ready to mate.

How big is a walleye fish?

While an adult walleye can be about 30 inches in height, it is about four times the size of a perch, in the family of which walleye is the largest fish.

How fast can a Walleye Fish swim?

A walleye can be a pretty fast fish when it tries to be. Although it usually aims at about 2.5-3 mph, when a walleye tries, it can also reach about 3.5 mph. So if you want to catch them, you have to be pretty fast.

How much does a walleye fish weigh?

Considering the length of the walleye fish, they weigh about 20 lb on average. They were declared extinct back in 1983 but are now known to exist in a good amount of numbers.

What are their male and female names of the species?

The male and female species of the walleye fish have no unique name associated with each gender. Therefore, they are referred to as male walleye fish and female walleye fish, respectively.

What would you call a baby walleye fish?

There is no specific name for a baby walleye fish, but when the eggs of walleye fish are laid in a clutch, they are known as fry.

What do they eat?

Walleyes are known to target smaller perches, crayfish, leeches, bugs, and worms. As a predator, they are very flexible and can eat whatever that they find. With their sharp teeth, they can easily hunt any prey that they’re looking for. They are also hunted by humans, eagles, otters, and other such animals.

Are they dangerous?

There have been no incidents wherein walleyes have attacked humans or caused them harm. However, if you do put your hand in the mouth of a walleye, you can be sure to get a bite that could leave you with a bad infection.

Would they make a good pet?

Walleyes can make a good pet, and many people keep walleyes as their pets. They are known to be harmless to human beings. However, the one concern about them would be their sharp teeth, which can make it difficult to cater to their needs.

Did you know...

One of the great facts about the walleye fish is that they are the state fish of many Vermont, South Dakota, Minnesota, and various other Canadian provinces. This fish is also known to be nocturnal.

Do people eat walleye fish?

Walleye fish are completely safe to consume and are eaten by people. They are the largest of the perch family and some people eat them to see if they do taste like perch. Its flesh is very similar to the perch fish which is why it is enjoyed as a delicacy by many people.

Popularity Of Walleye Fishing

Walleye fish are very easy to store, and then they can also be cultivated artificially very easily. This is why walleye fishing is very popular and is gaining a lot of attention lately.

Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly animal facts for everyone to discover! Learn more about some other fish including codfish, or fluke fish.

You can even occupy yourself at home by drawing one on our Walleye fish coloring pages.

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