Movement Patterns of Walleye (Stizostedion v. vitreum)in Pool 3 of the Upper Mississippi River as Determined by Ultrasonic Telemetry

Abstract

The movement of six walleyes (Stizostedion vitreum vitreum) ranging in size from 470 to 655 mm were tracked in pool 3 of the upper Mississippi River during 1973 and 1974. The study area consisted of a combination of main channel and slough-lake backwater habitats. Continuous tracking of each walleye after release revealed two major movement patterns; a variable meandering movement where the direction changed rapidly and often, and a relatively straight line cruising behavior. The variable meandering movement was most commonly observed in the vicinity of sunrise and sunset and seemed to correspond to a feeding behavior. The cruising behavior seemed to randomly occur throughout the day and night and was generally followed by a rest period ranging in length from two to six hours. Active fish tended to be active during both the diurnal and nocturnal hours. Fish which were less active remained so for the entire die1 cycle. Broad use of river habitats occurred although areas with a slight flow were preferred. Normal swiming speeds ranged from 0.5 to 1.5 body lengthslsecond (BLIs). Smaller fish exhibited short but rapid spurts of speed ranging from 2 to 3 BL/s. Field observations suggest that the latter swimming is part of a walleye elusive-behavior pattern.

Relative Activity of Brook Trout and Walleyes in Response to Flow in a Regulated River

“…While one brook trout exhibited limited habitat shifts, the other brook trout made both downstream and upstream movements. Variability in fish movements within a species is not uncommon (e.g., Bunt et al 1999) as active fish are often active in both diurnal and nocturnal hours, and sedentary fish remain so for entire days (see McConville and Fossum 1981). Reasons for this variability may be caused by the habitat in which the fish live.…”

A method for estimating fish density through the catches of gillnets

“…For example, Eurasian perch Perca fuviatilis within one lake may represent two genetically distinct subpopulations, which suggests the lack of any migrations (Gerlach et al, 2001). Ultrasonic telemetry has shown random movement by other species, such as brown trout Salmo trutta (Schulz & Berg, 1992), walleye Stizostedion vitreum (McConville & Fossum, 1981), black bass Micropterus spp. (Maynard et al, 2017), Arctic char Salvelinus alpinus (Dick et al, 2009), and whitefish Coregonus nasus (Carter, 2010).…”

The Spatial Ecology and Biological Responses of Wild Fishes Relative to Hydropower Development on the Winnipeg River

“…The tagged Walleye utilized habitat at the CHTTC considerably more than Lake Sturgeon during the monitoring period (Figure 3.9). Walleye are known to have site fidelity below hydropower facilities (McConville and Fossum 1981;Murchie and Smokorowski 2004) and to make minimal movements downstream from hydropower stations (Murchie and Smokorowski 2004 Highest residency occurred during the summer and autumn seasons (i.e., June to November; Figure 3.9), indicating that this area is favourable for Walleye during the open-water period, but were marginally present here during winter. The tagged fish likely move downstream in search of deeper, slower refugia areas when discharge and water temperatures are not optimal for energetic costs associated with foraging as water temperature drops below 5 o Celsius (Paragamian 1989).…”