Walleye Habitat: Management and Research Needs

Habitat is a fundamental cornerstone of fish populations and our ability to manage habitat is predicated on understanding relations between fish population dynamics and habitat quantity and quality.  However, in few areas of fisheries overall do we lack science-based management as badly as we do in managing habitat.  In north temperate lakes, poor recruitment by walleye is often addressed by constructing artificial spawning reefs.  This practice has been implemented for over 50 years across large numbers of systems and continues today but several reviews suggest that the success of these projects is very poor.  In these cases, other factors are limiting recruitment which are not only not being addressed, they are also not being diagnosed.  Remedying this situation and many other perceived habitat-related management problems may require a broader ecosystem context with which to understand how and when fish habitat is limiting, and which aspects of their life history are affected.  Because walleye have adapted to a wide variety of environments in North America by employing different reproductive strategies, they have demonstrated their ability to utilize a variety of habitats.  Examining habitat requirements of walleye in a broader ecological context can only increase the successful management of this species.