Elbow Lake (Becker County)
Becker County, Minnesota - DNR stocking history, depth and survey data
Minnesota · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) · DOW 03015900
DNR records show 14 stocking entries at Elbow Lake (Becker County) since 2017, most recently walleye fry in 2025 (200,000 fish).
- Elbow Lake (Becker County) has 14 DNR stocking records across 9 years (2017-2025): walleye (14).
- The most-stocked species by count is walleye: 2,603,750 fish on record.
- Maximum depth 76 ft; surface area 995 acres, 200 littoral acres, 13.6 miles of shoreline, per the DNR lake survey.
- Average water clarity (Secchi depth) 11.0 ft.
- Fish species DNR lists here: black bullhead, black crappie, bluegill, bowfin (dogfish), brown bullhead, green sunfish, hybrid sunfish, largemouth bass, muskellunge, northern pike, pumpkinseed, rock bass, and 5 more.
- 1 public access on the DNR list.
- Most recent DNR fish survey: (targeted survey).
- Becker County, nearest town Waubun; DNR lake number (DOW) 03015900.
Depth map
Bathymetric contours from the Minnesota DNR lake survey mapped 8/3/1971 (orig map); depths in feet. Simplified for the web; not for navigation.
Stocking history
| Year | Species | Size | Number | Pounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Walleye | fry | 200,000 | 1.9 |
| 2025 | Walleye6 | fry | 123,750 | 1.0 |
| 2025 | Walleye6 | fingerlings | 7,000 | 400.0 |
| 2024 | Walleye6 | fry | 275,000 | 2.2 |
| 2024 | Walleye | fry | 200,000 | 1.9 |
| 2023 | Walleye | fry | 200,000 | 1.6 |
| 2023 | Walleye6 | fry | 225,000 | 1.8 |
| 2022 | Walleye | fry | 200,000 | 1.8 |
| 2022 | Walleye6 | fry | 213,000 | 1.9 |
| 2021 | Walleye | fry | 200,000 | 1.7 |
| 2020 | Walleye1 | fry | 160,000 | 1.4 |
| 2019 | Walleye | fry | 200,000 | 1.6 |
| 2018 | Walleye | fry | 200,000 | 1.7 |
| 2017 | Walleye | fry | 200,000 | 1.7 |
1 fish purchased and stocked by private citizens and sporting groups. 6 fish cooperatively purchased, raised, and/or stocked by White Earth Nation.
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 |
|---|---|---|
| asphalt ramp | county | South shore of south bay on the NE end of the lake in section 5 |
DNR fish survey, 2024
| Species | Gear | Catch per net | Total catch | Avg lb |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bluegill | Backpack electrofishing | 88.50 | 131 | 0.00 |
| Yellow perch | Backpack electrofishing | 35.13 | 52 | 0.00 |
| Green sunfish | Backpack electrofishing | 28.37 | 42 | 0.00 |
| BKF | Backpack electrofishing | 22.97 | 34 | 0.00 |
| BCS | Backpack electrofishing | 18.24 | 27 | 0.00 |
| Largemouth bass | Backpack electrofishing | 17.56 | 26 | 0.00 |
| Brassy minnow | Backpack electrofishing | 11.48 | 17 | 0.00 |
| Hybrid sunfish | Backpack electrofishing | 10.81 | 16 | 0.00 |
| Brassy minnow | 15-ft beach seine | 30.33 | 91 | 0.00 |
| MMS | 15-ft beach seine | 2.33 | 7 | 0.00 |
| Largemouth bass | 15-ft beach seine | 2.33 | 7 | 0.00 |
| Green sunfish | 15-ft beach seine | 1.67 | 5 | 0.00 |
| Bluegill | 15-ft beach seine | 0.67 | 2 | 0.00 |
| LED | 15-ft beach seine | 0.33 | 1 | 0.00 |
| BKF | 50-ft beach seine | 21.33 | 64 | 0.00 |
| Brassy minnow | 50-ft beach seine | 20.33 | 61 | 0.00 |
| Yellow perch | 50-ft beach seine | 18.00 | 54 | 0.00 |
| Bluegill | 50-ft beach seine | 15.67 | 47 | 0.00 |
| MMS | 50-ft beach seine | 9.00 | 27 | 0.00 |
| Largemouth bass | 50-ft beach seine | 4.33 | 13 | 0.00 |
| Green sunfish | 50-ft beach seine | 3.33 | 10 | 0.00 |
| Hybrid sunfish | 50-ft beach seine | 2.33 | 7 | 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 Elbow Lake was conducted August 22nd - 23rd, 2024, by Detroit Lakes Fisheries Staff. Data was collected from 14 sampling stations evenly spaced around the lake. All stations were sampled with a backpack electrofishing unit, 3 were sampled with a 50-foot seine and 3 stations were sampled with a 15-foot seine. Eight stations were not sampled with a seine because of dense vegetation, water being too deep or muck being too thick to effectively use a seine. Nearshore sampling captured 21 species of native fish, which included eight species that are intolerant of disturbance (Banded Killifish, Blackchin Shiner, Blacknose Shiner, Mimic Shiner, Least Darter, Iowa Darter, Rock Bass, and Mottled Sculpin) and two species that is tolerant of disturbance (Black Bullhead and Green Sunfish). The three most common species captured during the nearshore survey in order of abundance were: Bluegill, Bluntnose Minnow, and Yellow Perch. The nearshore fish survey data was combined with the standard survey data from July 2024 to describe the fish community and provide a Fish-based Index of Biotic Integrity (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., Black Bullhead, Fathead Minnow, and 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 will contribute biological information about the health of the fish community to a watershed assessment process in coordination with MN Pollution Control Agency. Elbow Lake is located in the Otter Tail River Watershed.
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.
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