Finally, the spawning group rushes upward into shallow water, stops, the females roll on their sides, release their eggs and simultaneously milt is released by the males. Apparently females deposit most of their eggs in one night of spawning. The fertilized eggs are heavier than the water and fall into crevices in the stream or lake bottom where they stick to stones and debris. The maximum number of eggs released by one female has been estimated at 612,000. The eggs hatch in 12 to 18 days on the spawning grounds and by 10 to 15 days after hatching the young have dispersed into the upper levels of open water.
Growth is fairly rapid in the south, but slower in more northerly latitudes.
Females grow more quickly than males. The diet of walleye shifts very rapidly, from invertebrates to fishes, as the walleye increase in size. This is partly a reflection of their change in habitat from surface to bottom waters. During the first six weeks of life their diet consists mostly of copepods, crustaceans, and very small fish. They can be cannibalistic, especially if small yellow perch or other forage fish are not readily available.