# Walleye VS Saugeye



## Paradise Fisherman

What is the differences? I could never tell them apart. To me, it's still just a walleye.


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## Brian.Smith

Saugeye are the cross with a walleye and a sauger. The saugeye has a little darker markings, and I don't think they get as big


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## squid_1

It cost less to fish for saugeye!


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## saugeyesam

there are plenty of differences , walleye will suspend off the bottom for forage saugeyes tend to hold more to the bottom coming in shallow rather than hovering for food. saugeyes have been caught in less than three feet of water. as far as size goes , we all know walleyes break the double digits in weight quite frequently, but so do saugeyes the state record is 12 plus pounds which is only a few pounds shy of the current state record walleye which is 16 plus pounds . they both can be caught on about the same style tactics but remember saugeyes tend to hug tight to the bottom and move real shallow. sometimes you'll pass over saugeyes and not mark them on your sonar because they are so tight to the bottom.there are others on this sight who could tell you way more info than i can all you have to do is just ask. as far as there looks saugeyes have a more mottled appearance there arent distinctive black vertical bars like on a sauger and they are a little darker of an olive green to bronzeish color but saugeyes can and are easily mistaken for walley's quite often so just look for the the mottled black blotches on its sides and you'll know you got a saugeye some people say they also dont have the white tip on the lower lobe of the tail fins but this sometime appears just not as noticeable as on the walleyes . i hope this helps and doesnt confuse you guys.


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## DAWG239

You forgot one thing Sam.......The saugeye are better in the frying pan..lol


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## eyesman_01

DAWG239 said:


> You forgot one thing Sam.......The saugeye are better in the frying pan..lol


How's that? I've never had saugeye, but I haven't found any fish that is better than fresh walleye in the frying pan or deep fryer.

Maybe one of these days I'll have to broaden my horizons to find some saugeye and try for myself. I'm always open to something new when it comes to good food.


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## DAWG239

During the Browns season I host most the away games at my house and we have at lease a couple of fish fry's during these games. At one of the party's I had made walleye (from Lake Erie) and saugeye (from Atwood) and kept them separate. I had everyone sample each and asked them which they liked the best ,Saugeye won hands down. It's almost taste like I had put sugar in the breading. Dont get me wrong I love both. Just the saugeye seem to have a better taste if you can believe that.


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## riverKing

i have noticed the same thing, eat walleye sauger and saugeye out of the same watershed the sauger are best, then saugeye just under, walleye just arent as good as i once thought they were
none of them are as good once they get very big, my opinion, best eating is from 12-18in, two of those and i have dinner


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## Big Joshy

I agree I eat saugs from indian and deercreek and think they are slightly better eating than eyes from erie. I would have to say though that some places saugeye just taste terrible. The most notable would be Buckeye lake.
the filets have a brownish hue and taste like mud.

Oh and when saugeyes are spawning they can be caught as shallow as 1 ft.
my wifes biggest a 25 incher came right on the bank with three feet of line out at indian. My biggest came in 2.5 feet there. a 26" I released. That is in stained water though. In clear water like alum creek I wouldnt fish shallower than 5 ft.


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## saugeyesam

i quit going to erie and also dont fish the river runs anymore because i found that i dont need to drive all the way up north for tasty fish and a good fight on light tackle. oh btw heres a link to the odow site telling the differences appearance wise from saugers,saugeyes and the walleye.
http://www.dnr.state.oh.us/wildlife/Feature/FishF/saugeye.htm


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## Predator225

Even coming from a guy who spends way too much time and money chasing erie eyes (when its too cold for flatheads), i absolutely agree that saugeyes are better on the table.


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## NET MAN

i have to say i agree. i quit going to lake erie about 4 years ago. i went to lake erie every year sometimes twice a year after those golden eyes. then i started catching these saugeye here close and in my opion they are some of the best dang eatin fish i have ever had. there are a lot of differences from saugeye to walleye they are both good. but i would prefer a saugeye.


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## flthednut

I too have turned my nose up to lake Erie walleyes. Last six years or so I have been very disappointed with the bite up there. Getting way too expensive for a boat ride. I find that the Saugeyes are better tasting fish, and at the end of the day, my back and legs aren't shot from all the wave action. Also I don't have to deal with Zebra muscles, Bloody Gobies, and those Dag gummed Sheepheads......


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## saugmon

I've caught 1000's of saugeye and walleye. I don't even bother with erie anymore-Indian Lakes provides a slew of saugeye,short distance,and never been checked by ODNR for limits. ODNR really hammers ya with the safety equipment.

Both are very light biters. They'll clamp on your bait while reeling in and very easy to miss that bite. Sensitive rods and line-superbraids- help that little issue.

Saugeye will have a tipped tail,but it's more of a cream color. They'll come in two colors,with the dark spots- Some more golden with the dark bars on the side,some will have a darker bronze,with the dark bars on the side. Those darker saugeye I call freaks because the big ones seem to have teeth everywhere in their mouths- roof of mouth,gums,and even toothlike structures on their tongue. It's probably something due to the dominant gene taking over in some?

They have the exact same razor sharp cheeks and supersharp fins, LOL

Same papery mouth,which they spit out a lot of hooks if you give them any slack.

The best way I tell them apart,is on the dorsel fin. Fan that top fin out and look for black spots inbetween the spikes-in the webbing.Those are saugeye. They also have a different # of those spikes on the dorsel. Walleye won't have those spots in the webbing.

When you reel one and it hits your deck,they slosh around just like a northern pike.Stand back!! 

[bold]Keep an eye on your bait until it's out of the water.[/bold] They will hit it on the way in,less than 1 ft off the bank/seawall.

They are meaner,eating machines-so they grow very fast. Hooking a 5 lb+ saugeye,they'll take you right down to the bottom and just sit there-just like a hawg Walleye.

They'll hit anything a bass will Spinnerbait,worm,erie dearie,jigs,and cranks.

They hold tightly to the bottom and they do school up. If you catch a couple saugeye,set the waypoint on the gps. You'll catch 4-5 in a half hour,then it dies. Move around,about an hour later,go back to that hotspot and catch 4-5 more. They tend to hit on the top of the hour: 6 am,7 am,8am,etc. Remember your hot spots and keep hitting them in all possible directions. Sometimes they'll only hit 1 certain type of troll. Example: Trolling north/Sharp right turn at waypoint, tear up the furthest outside rod. Another spot,sharp left turn will-inside rod tear them up.

Saugeye thrive in my local west central lakes like IL and Lake Loramie. Muddy and Shallow. Firetiger is the hottest color,and keep the bait barely above the bottom. These shallow lakes,which avg less than 6' deep, all you need is only 10-12 yds of line out while trolling 6' water.You need 100+ in Erie.
I prefer 20#-30# spiderwire for the super sensitivity and the strength of snagging stumps. Planerboards are also effective,just like lake erie.

Prop wash and boat traffic?
It doesn't bother saugeye.If somebody blasts their way in front of me,no biggie. I'll still put them out of there.Not so for walleye.

Saugeye are very tempermental when it comes to cold fronts. Get a good week of good weather and it'll be a slaughter. Get weather like we had last week,and might as well forget it.


Ice: They are said to bite all year round.

Water temp over 85,then they disappearprobably into anything that they can hide- stumps/pads/bridges/etc?

Taste: Yummy. I'd have to have a batch of each to be able to tell the difference. Very good deep fried with Drakes Fry Krisp. I still have loads of fillets left from last summer,usually eating 1 batch each week.

We took 300 saugeye from may 25-july-15th last year. Avg was 16",but only 4 or so Fish Ohio winners. It was an awesome year for eaters,but terrible for the biguns.

Avg trip for 2 of us- 8-10 fish
Avg trip for 3: 16 fish
Avg cost per trip- $15 because of $3 a gallon gas!!!
Avg cost per fish- $2
5-6 hrs of trolling,home by noon,half hour to clean fish,then home:day after day after day! 

Baits lost on Stumps: Around 30-35 bombers. Many stumps/lots of boat traffic/and planerboards can be a nightmare on a stumpy lake, LOL. But it's only money$$$$

:T

Here's a few of last yrs haul:


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## NET MAN

Saugmon Those Are Some Nice Pics. They Look Tastey. I Hope I Catch A Mess Like That This Weekend. :b


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