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View Full Version : Athabasca River Walleye fall run, They go uptream or downstream?


huntinglover
09-21-2018, 06:37 PM
Anyone know? Athabasca River Walleye fall run, They go uptream or downstream? Thanks a lot.

Kurt505
09-21-2018, 06:48 PM
I’ll be honest, I’m no expert on this but my guess would be heading to the lakes, that can be up or down depending on where they’re from.

dodgeboy1979
09-22-2018, 07:49 AM
they will just stay in the deep pools within the river itself

Red Bullets
09-23-2018, 12:31 PM
an excerpt from a study..

"In addition,telemetry studies suggest there may be an upstream movement of walleye in the Athabasca River in the fall, which may be a feeding movement associated with walleye following the large lake whitefish fall migration. Overwintering habitat for walleye includes areas with adequate depth to avoid freezing, adequate dissolved oxygen levels and no strong currents. Walleye actively feed during the winter. Downstream movements of walleye out of the aquatic study area occur throughout the spring, summer and fall, with a portion of the population overwintering in downstream areas. However, some fish remain to overwinter in the Athabasca River. Sites in the Athabasca River used by overwintering walleye were characterized by shallow water depths, slow velocities and fine substrates."

https://open.alberta.ca/dataset/ea88e773-42b6-4d92-ba28-40aa636996c7/resource/266597be-3b25-48ed-bc02-c4040c729fc0/download/appendix-17.pdf

NSR_RAT
09-23-2018, 05:40 PM
an excerpt from a study..

"In addition,telemetry studies suggest there may be an upstream movement of walleye in the Athabasca River in the fall, which may be a feeding movement associated with walleye following the large lake whitefish fall migration. Overwintering habitat for walleye includes areas with adequate depth to avoid freezing, adequate dissolved oxygen levels and no strong currents. Walleye actively feed during the winter. Downstream movements of walleye out of the aquatic study area occur throughout the spring, summer and fall, with a portion of the population overwintering in downstream areas. However, some fish remain to overwinter in the Athabasca River. Sites in the Athabasca River used by overwintering walleye were characterized by shallow water depths, slow velocities and fine substrates."

https://open.alberta.ca/dataset/ea88e773-42b6-4d92-ba28-
40aa636996c7/resource/266597be-3b25-48ed-bc02-c4040c729fc0/download/appendix-17.pdf

Very useful information! Would you happen to have any of the same information on pike/walleye migration behaviour but for the North Saskatchewan river?

Red Bullets
09-23-2018, 11:33 PM
Very useful information! Would you happen to have any of the same information on pike/walleye migration behaviour but for the North Saskatchewan river?

This report is 10 years old but is still has interesting info on all of the reaches of the NSR and each reaches fish. Towards the bottom it has an interesting graph that has the months the various fish spawn in the NSR. What I find really interesting in this report is it mentions documented yellow perch being in reach 5 of the NS river.

http://www.nswa.ab.ca/sites/default/files/documents/NSRFMOOct7%2008%20Final%20_1_.pdf

My understanding is some fish do migrate downstream and some do overwinter. When I was talking with one of Alberta's biologist he mentioned a fish, a goldeye or walleye, with telemetry that swam many miles downstream in a short time period in fall. The Edmonton area reach (reach 5) of the NSR has some places suitable for overwintering. One area I know is 18 feet deep in low water so that area would hold a few walleye, sauger, pike and maybe even a sturgeon or three during the winter. There is another deep place downstream of Devon that would hold fish during winter. I have caught rocky mountain whites in the middle of winter right in Edmonton so some of them stick around too.

NSR_RAT
09-24-2018, 06:08 AM
This report is 10 years old but is still has interesting info on all of the reaches of the NSR and each reaches fish. Towards the bottom it has an interesting graph that has the months the various fish spawn in the NSR. What I find really interesting in this report is it mentions documented yellow perch being in reach 5 of the NS river.

http://www.nswa.ab.ca/sites/default/files/documents/NSRFMOOct7%2008%20Final%20_1_.pdf

My understanding is some fish do migrate downstream and some do overwinter. When I was talking with one of Alberta's biologist he mentioned a fish, a goldeye or walleye, with telemetry that swam many miles downstream in a short time period in fall. The Edmonton area reach (reach 5) of the NSR has some places suitable for overwintering. One area I know is 18 feet deep in low water so that area would hold a few walleye, sauger, pike and maybe even a sturgeon or three during the winter. There is another deep place downstream of Devon that would hold fish during winter. I have caught rocky mountain whites in the middle of winter right in Edmonton so some of them stick around too.

Thank you very much for the information and your time to look that up, very much appreciated!!

Red Bullets
09-24-2018, 09:51 AM
Thank you very much for the information and your time to look that up, very much appreciated!!

No problem. I didn't look it up. I had the report bookmarked already.

Talking moose
09-28-2018, 02:15 AM
an excerpt from a study..

"In addition,telemetry studies suggest there may be an upstream movement of walleye in the Athabasca River in the fall, which may be a feeding movement associated with walleye following the large lake whitefish fall migration. Overwintering habitat for walleye includes areas with adequate depth to avoid freezing, adequate dissolved oxygen levels and no strong currents. Walleye actively feed during the winter. Downstream movements of walleye out of the aquatic study area occur throughout the spring, summer and fall, with a portion of the population overwintering in downstream areas. However, some fish remain to overwinter in the Athabasca River. Sites in the Athabasca River used by overwintering walleye were characterized by shallow water depths, slow velocities and fine substrates."

https://open.alberta.ca/dataset/ea88e773-42b6-4d92-ba28-40aa636996c7/resource/266597be-3b25-48ed-bc02-c4040c729fc0/download/appendix-17.pdf

I would think that lake whites are predominantly very close to lake athabasca.