Fiske Lake

Otter Tail County, Minnesota - DNR stocking history, depth and survey data

Minnesota · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) · DOW 56043000

DNR records show 2 stocking entries at Fiske Lake since 2025, most recently walleye fry in 2025 (186,000 fish).

• Fiske Lake has 2 DNR stocking records across 1 year (2025-2025): walleye (2).
• The most-stocked species by count is walleye: 188,000 fish on record.
• Maximum depth 26 ft; surface area 254 acres, 186 littoral acres, 5.3 miles of shoreline, per the DNR lake survey.
• Average water clarity (Secchi depth) 10.3 ft.
• Fish species DNR lists here: black bullhead, black crappie, bluegill, brown bullhead, hybrid sunfish, largemouth bass, northern pike, pumpkinseed, walleye, yellow bullhead, yellow perch.
• 1 public access on the DNR list.
• Most recent DNR fish survey: May 6, 2022 (targeted survey).
• Otter Tail County, nearest town Battle Lake; DNR lake number (DOW) 56043000.

Stocking history

¹ fish purchased and stocked by private citizens and sporting groups.

Public accesses

DNR fish survey, 2022

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.

Fiske Lake is a 250-acre eutrophic (fertile) lake located in south-central Otter Tail County approximately three miles southeast of Underwood, MN. Fiske Lake is part of the Pomme de Terre River Watershed. The immediate watershed is composed primarily of agricultural land interspersed with hardwood woodlots. The maximum depth is 26 feet; however, 74% of the lake is less than 15 feet in depth. Historical secchi disk readings have ranged from 2.3 to 7.6 feet. The majority of the shoreline of Fiske Lake remains undeveloped. A DNR owned concrete public water access is located along the south shoreline of the lake. The shoal water substrates consist primarily of sand and silt. Stands of hardstem bulrush and common cattail are scattered along the entire lakeshore. Emergent aquatic plants such as bulrush and cattail provide valuable fish and wildlife habitat, and are critical for maintaining good water quality. They protect shorelines and lake bottoms, and can actually absorb and break down polluting chemicals. Emergent plants provide spawning areas for fish such as Northern Pike, Largemouth Bass, and panfish. They also serve as important nursery areas for all species of fish. Because of their ecological value, emergent plants may not be removed without a DNR permit. A spring trapnetting survey was conducted to analyze the Black Crappie population. Catch and length data indicate that a moderately abundant Black Crappie population with a high quality size structure exists in Fiske Lake. Crappies ranged in length from 6.5 to 14.8 inches with an average length of 10.5 inches. Seventy-four percent of the Black Crappies were 10.0 inches or greater in length and 12% were 12.0 inches or greater in length. Black Crappies attain an average length of 10.2 inches at five years of age. Anglers can maintain the quality of fishing by practicing selective harvest. Selective harvest encourages the release of medium to large-size fish while allowing the harvest of more abundant smaller fish for table fare. Releasing the medium to large fish will ensure that the lake will have enough spawning age fish on an annual basis and will provide anglers with more opportunities to catch large fish in the future. Fiske Lake is not listed as an infested water. Aquatic invasive species are threatening Minnesota waters. The non-native species can potentially harm water quality, water recreation, aquatic habitat, native species, and fish populations. Anglers can help prevent the introduction and spread of invasive species by following watercraft transportation laws.

Minnesota DNR survey narrative, May 6, 2022.

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