| Lk. St. Clair and St. Clair River This basin deserves a forum for itself with the world class fisheries including Muskie and Walleye. |
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View Poll Results: Do Walleyes "Turn Off?"
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NO. They have just moved somewhere else.
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6 |
7.59% |
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YES.
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43 |
54.43% |
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YES. They sometimes don't feed for days.
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19 |
24.05% |
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YES, but only for a few hours at a time.
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11 |
13.92% |
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07-31-2002, 09:16 PM
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Tracker
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Join Date: Feb 2001
Location: Troy, MI
Posts: 147
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Walleye "Bites"
Does anyone on this board know how quickly walleyes digest their prey?
I can usually catch a at least a couple of eyes in the Detroit River at Ecorse even though I start fishing at around 11:00 AM and quit before dark. I've been skunked the last couple of days, however. Last night I caught three 18 to 20 inch eyes and lost at least two others. Guess what I found in the stomachs of all three fish: nothing! Their stomachs were completely empty.
This leads me to believe that there might be something valid to the notion that walleyes can't be caught when "the bite is off."
Maybe I got skunked because the fish simply weren't biting around Ecorse prior to last night, rather than because they had moved somewhere else from where I ususally catch them. Comments, anyone?
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Old Dave, Still Trying After All These Years. 
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07-31-2002, 10:35 PM
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Michiganiac
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Join Date: Jan 2001
Location: west of Saginaw
Posts: 4,095
Photos: 25 
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Absolutely fish "turn off", or at least more realistically, they are not in an agressive feeding period. How many times have we marked schools (or lone) fish, threw everything possible at them, and still could not get a decent bite going ? Weather conditions (barometric pressure/storm fronts etc.) have a tremendous effect on the feeding habits of all species of fish. Water conditions at the particular time, previous fishing pressure ("boating" activity etc. also has a huge impact. As to the Walleyes' digestive capabilities, well, I'm no expert, but I have caught some Walleye that you could not believe that they would pack another morsel of food in their gullet and yet they biting hard and fast. Must be a eating machine in high gear at times. Any other input ?
IMHO
Whale 
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08-01-2002, 01:23 AM
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Sailor
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Join Date: Jan 2002
Location: Cedar Springs ,MI 49319
Posts: 638
Photos: 4
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The Whale has it right!
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Sailor
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08-01-2002, 03:13 PM
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Tracker
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Join Date: Feb 2001
Location: Troy, MI
Posts: 147
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There seem to be at least 3 of us who believe that walleye feeding turns off and on. What surprises me, though, is the fact that my walleyes' stomachs were completely empty. This might indicate that they had been "turned off" for a very long time -- maybe a couple of days. What caused this "turned off" period? Was it localized or wide spread? Enquiring fisherman need to know!
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Old Dave, Still Trying After All These Years.
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08-01-2002, 05:03 PM
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Guide
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Join Date: Dec 2001
Location: Davison
Posts: 692
Photos: 5
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It sure does seem that way. There seem to be times where they go nuts for an hour and shut down for the rest of the day.
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Tony
Genius has its limitations, stupidity does not!!
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08-01-2002, 06:33 PM
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Piscatorial Type Dentist
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Join Date: Apr 2002
Location: Cro-Har-Fre-Cloud.....(49349)
Posts: 8,294
Photos: 62
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Quote:
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Does anyone on this board know how quickly walleyes digest their prey?
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It depends on water temp & time of year - This time of year THEY are snappin' -they have to , the metabolism is crankin'... my guess would be that they are eating at LEAST once a day -- unless a big blow comes thru.
The Whale , is a smart man....
As far as empty stomachs go , tell me you NEVER saw a fish bark up it's lunch boatside while trying to rid itself of that pesky hook... lol
Come to think of it ---
I think I've seen almost every species "bark" up goodies coming to net....
my 2 ¢ ...... SFW
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08-01-2002, 07:00 PM
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Moderator
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Join Date: Jan 2001
Location: WASHINGTON MI. USA
Posts: 14,402
Photos: 61
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I for one always check out the contents of their stomachs. Have yet to find a walleye with anything in there. There always empty.
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08-01-2002, 08:44 PM
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Tracker
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Join Date: Feb 2001
Location: Troy, MI
Posts: 147
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Very interesting thread. I'm 65, and have fished for at least 57 years, and I can't remember ever seeing a fish toss its cookies as it approached the boat. Walleye Mike makes an excellent point that this regurgitation must take place soon after hookset, because he says that every eye he catches has a completely empty gut. I do not routinely examine stomachs, but I certainly have caught fish with stomachs filled with baitfish. I will check out every 'eye I bring home from now on, but it might be interesting to know if other fisherman agree with Walleye Mike. Perhaps these postmortems will throw some light on the issue of walleye "turn off" periods.
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Old Dave, Still Trying After All These Years.
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08-02-2002, 07:48 AM
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Charter Member
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Join Date: Mar 2001
Location: Washington
Posts: 1,488
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I routinely check the stomach. Just two weeks ago a group of ten of us went to canada and boated at least 700 walleye. I cleaned at least 100 of them and found food in most of them. I was surprised at the number that had crawfish in them. Many also had small perch...
Marc
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08-02-2002, 05:06 PM
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Guide
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Join Date: May 2002
Location: New Baltimore
Posts: 769
Photos: 1
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Well you guys got me thinking. Used to do a lot of handlining, both the Detroit River, Peche Island, beneath the Belle Isle bridge and in front of the Ren Cen and St. Clair River, around Marine City.
Mostly at night, now that I have thought a little about it, can't remember any gators taken at night with something in their stomach.
On the other hand, gators taken out of LSC, during the day, with either worms or cranks have had all kinds of critters in their stomach.
Interesting topic, just wonder why????? 
Now I am really confused.
On the other hand when the perch are on the feed late in the fall, little buggers eat everthing from crawfish, minnows, zebra mussels, etc.. Guess they are like deer, storing up for the winter ahead.
LSC, October, November & December for perch knock Lake Simcoe out of the box. If you can find them, you will catch them. Big shiners are the ticket. This is my favorite time of year. Only the fish gods know what you may catch that time of year, when you are out there perching. (Walleye, Muskie, Catfish on a light perch rig, what a riot)
Picture seeing your anchor on the bottom in 18-20 feet of crystal clear water, late in November, early December and just pounding those tasty little morsels. Time is approaching faster then you think.
Hang a big one!
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08-02-2002, 08:56 PM
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Charter Member
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Join Date: Dec 2001
Location: Saginaw
Posts: 1,053
Photos: 5
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plenty of the walleye that iv'e caught had crawfish in them also(mostly ausable river)never noticed anywhere else but i rarely check.
hoffie
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08-03-2002, 09:33 AM
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Moderator
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Join Date: Jul 2002
Location: Fair Haven MI
Posts: 2,904
Photos: 31
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when I was a teenager my buddy and I fished up town algonac off shore,casting cranks and twisters for walleye,12:00 AM -4:00 AM,..and the fish we got would be stuffed full of minnows,and as soon as you got them out of the water they would start tossing their lunch.
but nowadays fishing from the boat in the evening,the fish all seem to be empty!
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Remember no good deed goes unpunished!
TONGA
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08-04-2002, 10:30 AM
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Charter Member
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Join Date: Aug 2001
Location: West Toledo
Posts: 2,996
Photos: 22
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I remember pulling out 3 hand size gizzard shad out of the 31.5 incher I got out of southern lake Erie . In the fall you will consistently see walleye so fat from shad it looks like theyre ready to spawn.
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Lunk
Save Produce , Eat a Vegan
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08-04-2002, 11:01 AM
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Tracker
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Join Date: Feb 2001
Location: Troy, MI
Posts: 147
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I cleaned 5 walleyes and 2 sheephead yesterday caught near Ecorse. All of them had empty stomachs. And my buddy and I caught no walleyes at all on the crayfish we bought at Aco, which is the only place I know to get them except for Lakeside.
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Old Dave, Still Trying After All These Years.
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08-04-2002, 07:45 PM
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Moderator
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Join Date: Jul 2002
Location: Fair Haven MI
Posts: 2,904
Photos: 31
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we got 2 walleye this morning,both were empty
__________________
Remember no good deed goes unpunished!
TONGA
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