Sauger Life History in the Lower Portion of the Upper Mississippi River

Over the last century, sauger Sander canadensis populations have declined, which may be attributable to habitat alteration, hybridization and exploitation. Therefore, in order to maintain a sustainable sauger population and sport fishery, it is important to understand sauger life history. Because little is known concerning sauger life history within the Upper Mississippi River, we sought to evaluate the dynamic rate functions  and reproductive ecology of saugers. In order to determine these life history parameters we collected sauger (N=151) via experimental gillnets during spring 2011. We found that sauger had similar growth to other reported studies while Recruitment patterns were erratic with the 2008 year class dominating the age structure. Total annual mortality of the population was 52.1% with the largest declines between ages 3 and 4. In terms of reproductive ecology, females were more abundant than males. Gravid females exhibited high fecundity of approximately 80,000 eggs with a mean egg diameter of 1.52mm. Based on these results, we have uncovered sauger life history information that will allow evaluation of the population. The data can be used to build detailed population level models that will assist in ensuring sustainability of the sauger in the Upper Mississippi River.