For additional information visit the Ohio Division of
Wildlife Fish
Identification web page.
Scientific Name: Stizostedion vitreum X Stizostedion canadense
Common Name: Saugeye
Saugeye Interesting Facts
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Saugeye are a hybrid created by
crossing a female walleye with a male sauger
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Saugeye are a member of the perch
family (Percidae)
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The Ohio state record saugeye weighed
12.84 pounds and was caught at Alum Creek Reservoir near Columbus
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Saugeye are stocked by a handful of
states around the Midwest to create angling opportunities
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Saugeye eat mostly gizzard shad,
shiners and yellow perch in Ohio reservoirs
Saugeye Distribution and Identification
Saugeye are a naturally occurring hybrid in water bodies that have
reproducing populations of both walleye and sauger. Trautman
(1981) suggested that in water bodies with walleye and sauger a
hybridization rate of about 2-3% could be expected. Billington
et al. (1997) found that 4.1% of all Stizostedion (walleye,
sauger and saugeye) sampled in the Illinois river were saugeye.
The sites sampled in the study had not been stocked and were sustained
through natural reproduction.
In the 1980's state DNR's around the Midwest began experimenting
with stocking saugeye as a sportfish in reservoirs and rivers.
Throughout the 1960's and 70's walleye were stocked with little
success in turbid, structure deficient reservoirs. In the late
70's it was discovered that saugeye not only survive better than
walleye in reservoir habitats, they also grow faster and are more
easily caught by anglers. Most likely a phenomenon known as
"hybrid vigor" can explain the hybrid saugeye's aggressive
feeding behaviors. Saugeye were immediately popular with
anglers, and state's such as Ohio began replacing walleye with yearly
stockings of saugeye.
Saugeye look similar to both parental species. Saugeye are
best identified by their "blotchy" saddle markings on their
side and back similar to sauger, but saugeye usually have white
pigment on the lower portion of their tail along with dark blotches on
their dorsal fin membrane. Identification of saugeye can be
difficult in water bodies that have all three Stizostedion species,
such as the Ohio River, but if it is possible to directly compare the
three species at one time identification is much easier. Ohio,
along with most other states that stock saugeye, does not stock both
saugeye and walleye in any reservoir. To find out which species
is stocked in your favorite water body check with your local DNR
office.
Saugeye Biology
There is little doubt that saugeye stockings in reservoirs provide
for better sportfishing than walleye stockings. Most reservoir
systems lack the necessary water clarity and habitat required to
support self-sustaining walleye populations. Stocking programs
tend to be very costly when the time and effort needed to produce,
raise and stock fingerlings is taken into consideration. When it
became apparent that the sportfishing return was marginal for certain
reservoirs stocked with walleye, stocking saugeye became an attractive
option. Saugeye provided many benefits when compared to
walleye. Saugeye generally are easier to rear than walleye, and
as mentioned earlier, survive and grow better in reservoir
systems. When creel surveys proved that saugeye were also easier
to catch it seemed that stocking saugeye was the solution to provide
better angling.
As early as the mid-1980's biologists began to notice an unexpected
consequence of the saugeye stocking programs. It was originally
assumed that saugeye would be sterile, because they are a hybrid
species. Unfortunately, research projects started clearly
documenting not only saugeye X walleye reproduction, but also saugeye
X saugeye reproduction. Johnson et al. (1988) found that male
saugeye crossed with female walleye resulted in 10% hatching success
of second-generation hybrids. Fiss et al. (1997) not only
documented walleye X saugeye reproduction, but also found saugeye X
saugeye reproduction in Normandy Reservoir, TN.
Considering all of the potential genetic impacts associated with
stocking saugeye, why do some states continue to stock them? For
saugeye to have any impact on native populations of walleye and
sauger, they must come into contact with them. By considering
factors such as connectivity with other watersheds and presence of
walleye and sauger, it is still possible to create great saugeye
fisheries in situations where the risk for reproduction with parental
species is low. For example, in Ohio, upground reservoirs and
central Ohio reservoirs are stocked heavily with saugeye, but
realistically those fish will never come into contact with native
fish. The upground reservoirs are completely isolated from their
water source, and central Ohio reservoirs are over 100 km from the
Ohio River in most cases. While anglers stocking saugeye that
they caught into other water bodies is always a risk, by cautiously
selecting waters for yearly stockings state DNR's can create saugeye
fishing opportunities without harming native fish populations.
For more information about saugeye, see these interesting pages:
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Ohio Division of Wildlife, saugeye
information page.
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Kansas Wildlife and Parks, saugeye
stocking page.
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Oklahoma Department of Wildlife
Conservation, saugeye
and walleye page.
References Cited:
Billington, N., R. C. Brooks and R. C.
Heidinger. 1997. Frequency and natural hybridization between
saugers and walleyes in the
Peoria Pool of the Illinois River, as
determined by morphological and electrophoretic criteria.
North American Journal of Fisheries
Management 17: 220-224.
Fiss, F. C., S. M. Sammons, P. W.
Bettoli and N. Billington. 1997. Reproduction among saugeyes (Fx
hybrids) and walleyes in
Normandy Reservoir, Tennessee. North
American Journal of Fisheries Management 17: 215-219.
Johnson, B. L., D. L. Smith and R. F.
Carline. 1988. Habitat preferences, survival, growth, foods, and
harvest of walleyes and walleye X
sauger hybrids. North American Journal of
Fisheries Management 8: 292-304.
Trautman, M. B. 1981. The fishes of
Ohio (2nd edition). The Ohio State University Press. Columbus,
Ohio, USA.
Article By:
Travis Hartman,
Fondriest Environmental, October 2002
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