Why Walleye Eyes Glow and How It Can Help You Catch More Fish

Understanding the tapetum lucidum gives anglers a low-light advantage when fishing for walleye.

Learn why walleye eyes glow in photos and at night. Discover how the tapetum lucidum boosts their vision and makes them deadly low-light predators. | Photo by Joe Shead

Why Walleye Eyes Reflect Light in Photos

You’ve no doubt seen the eye of a walleye turn glassy white in photos or when a light shines on it. And you’ve certainly seen a deer’s eyes shine in the headlights.

These glowing eyes, which are also common in nocturnal animals and even cats and dogs, help animals see better in low-light conditions. And it’s all thanks to a special reflective layer in the eyes called the tapetum lucidum.

Fish Eyes vs. a Camera Lens: A Useful Analogy

The eye is an extraordinary unit with a complex function. You can think of it acting very much like a camera lens. The cornea lies at the front part of the eye and protects the rest of the eye like a camera lens filter. Light enters the eye through the pupil, which acts like the aperture of a camera lens by growing larger in dim light to allow more light transmission and shrinking in bright light to allow less light transmission.

More Rods, Fewer Cones: Designed for Dim Light

Animals like raccoons, which are mostly nocturnal have more rods and fewer cones than human eyes, giving them superior low-light vision. | Dreamstime.com | © Oakdalecat | 52649683

Light becomes focused on the retina, located at the back of the eye. The retina contains tiny photoreceptors called rods and cones. Rods are sensitive to light. They are what allow us to see in low light. Cones are responsible for crisp, color vision and dictate the range of the color spectrum we can see.

So, creatures that have excellent low-light vision have more rods, which help them see better in the dark, but fewer cones, which gives them poorer visual acuity and a narrower band band of colors visible during the day.

The Tapetum Lucidum: Nature’s Night Vision Booster

Walleye's distinctive glowing eyes can even be seen during the daytime when viewed from just the right angle. | Joe Shead

The tapetum lucidum, which is found in some animals, is a special layer of cells located
behind the retina that mirrors light that isn’t absorbed by photoreceptors. The light bounces back off this layer, giving the photoreceptors a second chance to absorb the light, thereby improving vision in low light. Any light that isn’t absorbed by these photoreceptors is then reemitted from the eye, which gives the eye of animals possessing a tapetum lucidum that familiar glow.

Walleye vs. Perch: Predator and Prey in the Dark

Interestingly, studies on walleyes have shown that the tapetum develops over time. Small
walleyes don’t have this layer and therefore, feed during the day on zooplankton. As the
walleye grows, the tapetum develops and walleyes feed more actively in dim light and
even at night. The classic scenario is when walleyes prey on perch, which lack the
tapetum, and therefore, have poor night vision and are much more vulnerable to predation
in low light.

Why Glowing Eyes Come in Different Colors

Your cat and that walleye you just caught share a similar trait—the tapetum lucidum which makes their eyes seems to glow reflected light. | Dreamstime.com | © Andrey Ganysh | 86523931

The color that reflects off an animal’s eye varies greatly. Rabbit eyes tend to reflect red.
A black Lab’s eyes are green, as are cats, usually. Deer eyes are white. Varying amounts
of substances like riboflavin or zinc determine what color the tapetum reflects, as do
different pigments found in the eye. The animal’s age and even the color of its fur can
also influence the color the tapetum reflects.

Use Walleye Night Vision to Your Advantage for More Bites in Low Light

You may be thinking, sure, that’s cool to know, but that’s a lot of science for a fishing article. How can this information help me catch more walleye?

By understanding how the tapetum lucidum enhances their night vision and gives walleye eyes that trademark, ghostly glow, you gain an instant edge. You now know that walleye, by design, are low-light and even nocturnal feeders. By focusing on areas loaded with baitfish during those times when walleyes have a biological advantage over their prey, you’re much more likely to find these fish aggressively feeding. And to make it even easier for a walleye to find and target your lure over a real perch, choose presentations with extra vibration and flash.