Busties Lake
Itasca County, Minnesota - DNR stocking history, depth and survey data
Minnesota · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) · DOW 31053000
DNR records show 3 stocking entries at Busties Lake since 2017, most recently walleye fry in 2021 (71,000 fish).
- Busties Lake has 3 DNR stocking records across 3 years (2017-2021): walleye (3).
- The most-stocked species by count is walleye: 220,000 fish on record.
- Maximum depth 44 ft; surface area 245 acres, 71 littoral acres, 3.8 miles of shoreline, per the DNR lake survey.
- Average water clarity (Secchi depth) 12.5 ft.
- Fish species DNR lists here: black crappie, bluegill, brown bullhead, hybrid sunfish, largemouth bass, northern pike, pumpkinseed, smallmouth bass, walleye, yellow bullhead, yellow perch.
- 1 public access on the DNR list.
- Most recent DNR fish survey: (targeted survey).
- Itasca County, nearest town Craigville; DNR lake number (DOW) 31053000.
Depth map
Bathymetric contours from the Minnesota DNR lake survey; depths in feet. Simplified for the web; not for navigation.
Stocking history
| Year | Species | Size | Number | Pounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Walleye | fry | 71,000 | 0.8 |
| 2019 | Walleye | fry | 71,000 | 0.7 |
| 2017 | Walleye | fry | 78,000 | 0.7 |
Field note · Minnesota stocks by year, not by truck day: walleye fry go in within weeks of ice-out, fingerlings and yearlings mostly in fall, and stream trout in spring and fall. A row here means the fish went in during that year; DNR adds the year's rows after the fact, so the current year can look empty until winter.
Public accesses
| Type | Owner | Where |
|---|---|---|
| earthen ramp | Minnesota DNR | State-owned access on north shore of lake; parking for 5 rigs. |
DNR fish survey, 2022
| Species | Gear | Catch per net | Total catch | Avg lb |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bluegill | 15-ft beach seine | 77.00 | 77 | 0.00 |
| BCS | 15-ft beach seine | 8.00 | 8 | 0.00 |
| Largemouth bass | 15-ft beach seine | 5.00 | 5 | 0.00 |
| Blacknose shiner | 15-ft beach seine | 1.00 | 1 | 0.00 |
| Bluegill | Backpack electrofishing | 59.80 | 74 | 0.00 |
| Largemouth bass | Backpack electrofishing | 29.90 | 37 | 0.00 |
| Central mudminnow | Backpack electrofishing | 3.23 | 4 | 0.00 |
| Yellow perch | Backpack electrofishing | 2.42 | 3 | 0.00 |
| Pumpkinseed | Backpack electrofishing | 0.81 | 1 | 0.00 |
| Tadpole madtom | Backpack electrofishing | 0.81 | 1 | 0.00 |
| Blacknose shiner | Backpack electrofishing | 0.81 | 1 | 0.00 |
| Hybrid sunfish | Backpack electrofishing | 0.81 | 1 | 0.00 |
| Bluegill | Standard trap nets | 24.00 | 216 | 0.20 |
| Pumpkinseed | Standard trap nets | 2.56 | 23 | 0.28 |
| Black crappie | Standard trap nets | 2.11 | 19 | 0.28 |
| Northern pike | Standard trap nets | 1.44 | 13 | 1.91 |
| Yellow bullhead | Standard trap nets | 0.89 | 8 | 0.77 |
| Hybrid sunfish | Standard trap nets | 0.78 | 7 | 0.40 |
| Largemouth bass | Standard trap nets | 0.67 | 6 | 1.00 |
| Brown bullhead | Standard trap nets | 0.11 | 1 | 0.96 |
| Bluegill | 50-ft beach seine | 7.75 | 31 | 0.00 |
| Yellow perch | 50-ft beach seine | 2.50 | 10 | 0.00 |
| Largemouth bass | 50-ft beach seine | 1.50 | 6 | 0.00 |
| BCS | 50-ft beach seine | 0.25 | 1 | 0.00 |
| Pumpkinseed | 50-ft beach seine | 0.25 | 1 | 0.00 |
| Black crappie | 50-ft beach seine | 0.25 | 1 | 0.00 |
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.
A targeted survey of nearshore fish species in Busties Lake was conducted on July 5-7, 2022 by Index of Biological Integrity (IBI) Program Staff. Sampling sites were evenly spaced around the lake and each was sampled by backpack electrofishing and seining with a 50-foot seine, where possible. Backpack electrofishing was completed at all ten sampling stations, but four stations were sampled from the boat due to site conditions. Similarly, a 50-foot seine was used to sample four stations, a 15-foot seine was used to sample one station, and site conditions prevented the use of seines at five stations. Nearshore sampling captured 10 species of fish including two species that are intolerant of disturbance (i.e., Blackchin Shiner and Blacknose Shiner) and no species that are tolerant of disturbance. A concurrent summer trap net survey was conducted by IBI Program Staff. Nine trap nets were set along the shoreline and in shallow offshore locations that encompassed multiple habitat types. Bluegill comprised a majority of the trap net catch by number and Bluegill and Northern Pike comprised a majority of the catch by biomass. The number of Bluegill sampled per net was above the 50% quartile for similar Lake Class 31 lakes and the average length was 6.3 inches, with 29% over 7 inches. The nearshore and trap net data were combined with gill net data from a July 2021 survey to describe the fish community and provide a Fish-based IBI (FIBI) score. The FIBI uses fish community data to measure a lake's health, and the types of fish species present can help identify any stressors that may be negatively affecting the lake environment. In Minnesota lakes, certain fish species cannot survive without clean water and a healthy habitat (e.g., Blackchin Shiner, Iowa Darter, and Rock Bass), while other species are tolerant of degraded conditions (e.g., Green Sunfish). The FIBI score, composed of several fish community diversity and composition metrics, indicates the overall health of a lake by comparing it to what is expected for a healthy lake. For additional information on the FIBI, search for "lake index of biological integrity" on the mndnr.gov website. Data from this survey indicates Busties Lake is healthy as indicated by an FIBI score, well above the impairment threshold for aquatic life use determined for similar lakes. Data from this survey will contribute biological information about the health of the fish community to the Pine River Watershed assessment process in coordination with MN Pollution Control Agency.
Minnesota DNR survey narrative, .
All Minnesota stockings · every Minnesota lake with a page · state CSV · this lake on DNR LakeFinder
Stocking rows, depths, accesses and survey figures are Minnesota DNR LakeFinder data as of 2026-09-02; contours are the DNR bathymetric survey. Regulations, slot limits and special rules are on the DNR page linked above, not here.
Hear when the states we cover post stockings
One email a week in season: which waters in the states we cover were stocked, straight from the state agencies' own postings. No spam, no fishing-gear ads in the mail.
Free · double opt-in · unsubscribe anytime · we store only your email.