Pond Boss Forums INTRO Questions & Observations Walleye

Well I thought about putting Walleye in my two acre pond for some time. I am going today to pickup twenty-five from Stoney Creek Hatcheries in Grant Michigan. The great experiment begins.

I'm a big WE fan and really enjoy having them as a bonus catch in our pond. Three questions....What size are you stocking? What other predators and size are in your pond? What do you have for forage for the WE?

I am stocking the biggest I can get. I have big bass in there but the hatchery says that the little Walleye snakes will head to the deepest point. Which is eighteen feet.So we will see.

Unless these walleye are big enough that your bass can't eat them, I would think you would definitely want more than 25 for a 2 acre pond. Seems like a very low density

FWIW....

I will be stocking 10 more WE in our pond in a few weeks. As done in the past, I will be releasing 10lbs of GSH a half hour before I release the WE as a diversion to allow the WE a chance to acclimate some to their surroundings before being targeted by the LMB. I am stocking 7 to 9 inch WE.

Like I said just a cheap experiment. I have tons of minnows in my pond. So I am thinking that the Walleye will have a fighting change. We will see.

Great news John! Kind of a miserable day for a color tour through MI but an exciting trip all the same! So it sounds like there is no minimal order for Stoney Creek? Or did you have to split an order?

I'm just about ready to put a predator of my own in and if I could get 25 or less walleye in Grant I might just make the run myself. Any idea on how late in the season I can still go?

I'm still hoping on using a different top predator (HSB or SMB) but it would be a cool experiment to start with walleye and see what they target (for example would they target various minnow types or would they target my younger YP?)

Would you have a way of knowing what forage they are targeting?

My pond is tiny so I think in your size pond you are going to do well.

Initially I stocked ~25,000 baitfish in my 1 1/4 ac pond. Let them breed for a full year. The next year I added the rest of my fish including 24 walleye 6-8". The year after, I caught several at 14"-16" and the year after that they were 18"-21". I've only taken out 2 in the past 7 years of the pond's existence and look forward to seeing a couple to examine condition, length, weight, etc.

Thanks for the walleye update. It is going good so far. Keep us updated on the pond's progress.

20-21" walleye in year 3 is very substantial growth. That would be considered very high growth rate in my book.
Nicely done!
With Favorable conditions in my area, 16-17" for yr 3 is normal so you're doing something right. Keep it up.

I am just curious has anyone had their Walleye spawn?

I did, at least one year. 2 years after I restocked my 1 acre pond (completely drained and restocked from scratch) my kids and I were out swimming in it and there were some 1.5-2" fry swimming near our floating dock. I managed to catch one and it was 100% a WE.

Pond has rocky bank and an almost constant flow of water in from the east. Some of the experts here said that may have been the triggering factor. No ides, and haven't seen any since then (2 years ago).

Has anyone reported success in getting walleye to eat pellets?
If they don't eat them directly, do they learn to target the smaller fish that are eating pellets at feeding time?

I'm wondering outside of lots of minnows or shiners, what else can you build up in the forage base for them to eat, crayfish?

I found this interesting thread about what anglers find in the stomach of walleye.

I'd be curious if the biologists can confirm that stomach acid is different (more acidic) than other fish as the member states in his post. He feels the prey in a walleye stomach turns to liquid much faster than bass or other fish. Possible?

I have to believe the GBH on my property must have super digestion. He can pack a huge goldfish bigger than his neck down his throat and somehow not gain a pound and still feel hungry enough to keep hunting for another treat.

Looks like in this post the conclusion is that if there is content left in their stomach that they like small BG, YP, certain kinds of (soft) crayfish, gobies and any kind of minnow.

Walleye stomach contents

John, would love to hear updates on how they are doing. You likely won't see them again for a while but maybe you will catch them somehow in the spring.

ewest our technical PB writer might be able to find a scientific article about this topic. I doubt very much that walleye have stronger stomach acid compared to other predator fish that have to deal with bones in their food. IMO biggest factor in rate of digestion of food in fish stomach has a lot to do with water temperature.

That particular article is a bit misleading.. BUT, I can say if you see the silvery/grey discharge, that is indication of mostly shad content being run through the digestive process.
As Bill suggests, I have no data either, nor have I heard of WAE having a higher acid than other comparable fish.

For years my buddy has been trying to convince me to put WE in our lake. I have always refused because I was too worried about them reproducing and messing up my Brook Trout plans. It seems like I read somewhere Bill Cody said they would reproduce if they had windblown rocky shoreline and I have a good bit of that.

For me, it would be a cool bonus fish as long as they didn't reproduce. I know they would be easier to over Winter than trout. Is reproduction a legitimate threat for me?

I don't remember the title of that thread but Bill and I both commented-if I remember correctly-to never say never.
If you have rock substrate with windblown frequency, it "could" happen.
I feel it is possible but probability is low.
Another possibility at your location is that at your altitude, the photo period may drive the walleye to spawn but water temp may be such that the female never releases eggs and actually reabsorbs them.

Thanks Snipe! It sounds like even if they were able to spawn they would have a hard time taking over the lake. I do have a good bit of rock and add multiple tandem loads each year and I have a TON of wind on the water. Like basically everyday.

What time of the year do they spawn?

Walleye are driven to their spawning grounds or staging areas in late fall/early winter. when photo period approaches 12 hrs they begin to spawn or attempt to. If water temps are not correct for eggs to ripen, the female will extend her time in the area until temps are right or until a time period goes by that triggers the female to reabsorb the eggs. It also takes large numbers of males present to stimulate the female to continue with the spawning process.
Several factors come into play beyond what I've mentioned here but photo period, temp and ratio of males are 3 huge factors.

Expect to have walleye spawning at spring water temperatures of 42-46F and some later spawning can extend to 50F. Snipe is well experienced with working with WE during the spring spawn. IMO I would stay with keeping the lake a trout lake especially since you have refined the aeration technique for severe winter weather conditions.

Completely agree with Bill on not taking a chance with ruining your trout lake.
I love my Walleye but for what you've put into your system to sustain trout, I would really hate to upset that delicate balance.
I could add that the small amount of data we have on higher elevation WAE does NOT include waters that have viable trout populations- a lot of complexity there, some of the variables we may not even recognize.

I agree with Bill. Rate of digestion is a function of water temp (controls metabolism). While max growth and max feeding are not at the same temp in many species (see recent PB mag article) they are highly related. Let me check for more info.

Looked at several studies comparing SMB vs WE and LMB vs WE that contained lots of info on stomach contents , growth , energetics, water temps and food competition. Very extensive data - no mention/indication that WE had stronger stomach acid. They did provide that the amount of inverts , insects and small fish were what WE consumed. Stomach contents indicated far more insects and inverts than LMB or SMB. See below from another source - FishBase.

http://fishbase.org/TrophicEco/FoodItems...species=vitreus

Snipe and Bill - Thanks for the input.