Walleye (
Sander vitreus, formerly
Stizostedion vitreum) is a freshwater
perciform fish native to most of
Canada and to the
Northern United States. It is a
North American close relative of the
European pikeperch. The walleye is sometimes called the
yellow walleye to distinguish it from the
blue walleye, which is a subspecies that was once found in the southern
Ontario and
Quebec regions, but are now presumed extinct. However, recent genetic analysis of a preserved (frozen) 'blue walleye' sample suggests that the blue and yellow walleye were simply phenotypes within the same species and do not merit separate taxonomic classification.