Scientific Name
Sander canadensis
Sauger
Image Credit
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Length
25-41 centimetres (10-16 inches)
Weight
0.2-0.9 kilograms (0.5-2 pounds)
Similar Species
Walleye
Location

throughout Ontario, especially central, northeastern and northwestern Ontario

Description
  • large, elongated body
  • grey to brown back with 3-4 darker brown saddles
  • paler sides, often with darker brown blotches or round spots
  • white belly
  • distinct blotches or bands on adults
  • lacks the walleye’s white tip on lower tail fin
  • spots on dorsal fin, unlike walleye
  • separate spiny and soft dorsal fins
  • large mouth extends below back edge of pupil
Habitat
  • murky lakes and large rivers
  • soft mud bottoms to flooded timber, rubble or bedrock
  • preferred cover – weed, wood, rock
Angling Tips
  • sauger avoid light—best times to fish are morning and evening, and cloudy or overcast days
  • take almost any bait or lure in spring, and feed well in fall
  • more challenging to catch in summer
  • cast or troll with spinners or minnow-imitating plugs
  • troll with worm harness rigs of spinners and beads
Common Bait
  • jigs tipped with soft plastics, live bait or bucktail
  • minnow imitating plugs
  • minnows, earthworms, crayfish