Buffalo Lake (Wright County)

Wright County, Minnesota - DNR stocking history, depth and survey data

Minnesota · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) · DOW 86009000

DNR records show 5 stocking entries at Buffalo Lake (Wright County) since 2016, most recently walleye fry in 2024 (760,000 fish).

• Buffalo Lake (Wright County) has 5 DNR stocking records across 5 years (2016-2024): walleye (5).
• The most-stocked species by count is walleye: 4,040,000 fish on record.
• Maximum depth 33 ft, mean depth 15 ft; surface area 1,552 acres, 760 littoral acres, 6.2 miles of shoreline, per the DNR lake survey.
• Average water clarity (Secchi depth) 3.1 ft.
• Fish species DNR lists here: bigmouth buffalo, black bullhead, black crappie, bluegill, bowfin (dogfish), brown bullhead, channel catfish, common carp, green sunfish, hybrid sunfish, largemouth bass, northern pike, and 8 more.
• 3 public accesses on the DNR list.
• Most recent DNR fish survey: October 10, 2025 (targeted survey).
• Wright County, nearest town Buffalo; DNR lake number (DOW) 86009000.

Depth map

Bathymetric contours from the Minnesota DNR lake survey mapped 7/27/1978 (orig map); depths in feet. Simplified for the web; not for navigation.

Stocking history

Public accesses

DNR fish survey, 2025

Catch per net (CPUE) is the DNR survey's count per gill net or trap net set; higher means more of that species were sampled, not a fishing forecast. Top species per gear shown; where we have no verified common name for a DNR code, the code itself is shown.

Buffalo Lake is a 1,552-acre general development lake located within the City of Buffalo in Wright County and is within the North Fork Crow River watershed. The lake has a maximum depth of 33 feet with an average depth of 15 feet, but poor water quality with a 10-yr average summer water clarity of three feet. Walleye fingerling stocking in Buffalo Lake began in 1945 and was stocked every 1-3 years until 1985. Fry were first stocked in 1984, with fry stocking being the stocking strategy since 1988. Fry are stocked at a rate of 1,000 fry/littoral acre (760,000) during even numbered years but have been stocked at higher rates when surplus fry have been available. Fall electrofishing results for Young of the Year (YOY) Walleye have been highly variable; however, nine out of the past fourteen stockings have been successful (>25/hr). Fall electrofishing has been conducted in a few years where Walleye were not stocked, and low numbers of YOY Walleye have been found. Electrofishing in October 2023 yielded a YOY catch rate of 6.7/hr (on time), which indicates that there is some level of natural reproduction, but it is unlikely to be enough to support a popular fishery such as Buffalo Lake. The 2024 fry stocking was successful with a catch rate of 47.9/hr. Larger Walleye (age ?1) were captured at a rate of 112.5/hr and ranged in length from 9.8 to 25.8 inches. Fall electrofishing in October 2025 (a non-stocked year) yielded a low YOY Walleye catch rate of 2.1/hr, consistent with the limited natural reproduction observed in previous non-stocking years such as 2023. Larger Walleye (age ?1) were captured at a rate of 12.8/hr and ranged in length from 13.2 to 24.3 inches.

Minnesota DNR survey narrative, October 10, 2025.

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