Walleye

Few fish rival the reputation for table fare enjoyed by walleye, sauger and saugeye.

Although abundant in some Arkansas waters, these species never have enjoyed the popularity given to them in northern or western states. However, many northern transplants find great sport in pursuing walleye in lakes such as Greers Ferry and Lake Catherine.

Arkansas’s walleye population is boosted by the work of the AGFC’s hatchery system, which has refined the science of hatching this species to an art form. Unlike bass and other sunfish eggs, which are hatched in nests and guarded by their parents, walleye eggs are laid and fertilized in rocky shoals where current keeps them clean and oxygenated until they hatch. Hatchery crews mimic these conditions in the hatchery, bringing in female fish that are ready to spawn, manually mixing the eggs with the milt from male fish, then returning the adult brood fish to the waters where they came. Walleye produced from the spawning effort are distributed to many lakes and rivers in Arkansas so anglers can target these fine-tasting fish of the true perch family.