Fox Lake (Becker County)
Becker County, Minnesota - DNR stocking history, depth and survey data
Minnesota · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) · DOW 03035800
DNR records show 4 stocking entries at Fox Lake (Becker County) since 2016, most recently walleye fingerlings in 2024 (3,000 fish).
- Fox Lake (Becker County) has 4 DNR stocking records across 3 years (2016-2024): walleye (4).
- The most-stocked species by count is walleye: 7,355 fish on record.
- Maximum depth 24 ft; surface area 143 acres, 86 littoral acres, 2.4 miles of shoreline, per the DNR lake survey.
- Fish species DNR lists here: black bullhead, black crappie, bluegill, brown bullhead, hybrid sunfish, largemouth bass, northern pike, pumpkinseed, rock bass, walleye, white sucker, yellow bullhead, and 1 more.
- 1 public access on the DNR list.
- Most recent DNR fish survey: (standard survey).
- Becker County, nearest town Detroit Lakes; DNR lake number (DOW) 03035800.
Depth map
Bathymetric contours from the Minnesota DNR lake survey mapped 8/12/1965 (orig map); depths in feet. Simplified for the web; not for navigation.
Stocking history
| Year | Species | Size | Number | Pounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Walleye1 | fingerlings | 3,000 | 200.0 |
| 2019 | Walleye1 | fingerlings | 2,500 | 200.0 |
| 2016 | Walleye1 | yearlings | 140 | 25.0 |
| 2016 | Walleye1 | fingerlings | 1,715 | 175.0 |
1 fish purchased and stocked by private citizens and sporting groups.
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 |
|---|---|---|
| CA | Minnesota DNR | - In bay on NW shore. Off asphalt road. No parking area. |
DNR fish survey, 1999
| Species | Gear | Catch per net | Total catch | Avg lb |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bluegill | Standard trap nets | 50.44 | 454 | 0.06 |
| Largemouth bass | Standard trap nets | 1.56 | 14 | 0.37 |
| Pumpkinseed | Standard trap nets | 1.22 | 11 | 0.24 |
| Hybrid sunfish | Standard trap nets | 1.11 | 10 | 0.37 |
| Yellow bullhead | Standard trap nets | 0.67 | 6 | 0.66 |
| Northern pike | Standard trap nets | 0.67 | 6 | 2.30 |
| Rock bass | Standard trap nets | 0.56 | 5 | 0.14 |
| White sucker | Standard trap nets | 0.56 | 5 | 2.65 |
| Spottail shiner | Survey seining | 28.50 | 114 | 0.00 |
| Bluegill | Survey seining | 27.25 | 109 | 0.00 |
| Blacknose shiner | Survey seining | 15.00 | 60 | 0.00 |
| Yellow perch | Survey seining | 13.00 | 52 | 0.00 |
| Golden shiner | Survey seining | 12.25 | 49 | 0.00 |
| Rock bass | Survey seining | 1.25 | 5 | 0.00 |
| Pumpkinseed | Survey seining | 0.50 | 2 | 0.00 |
| Hybrid sunfish | Survey seining | 0.25 | 1 | 0.00 |
| White sucker | Standard gill nets | 17.25 | 69 | 2.16 |
| Walleye | Standard gill nets | 12.25 | 49 | 0.65 |
| Northern pike | Standard gill nets | 8.75 | 35 | 2.32 |
| Bluegill | Standard gill nets | 5.50 | 22 | 0.22 |
| Yellow bullhead | Standard gill nets | 2.75 | 11 | 0.56 |
| Yellow perch | Standard gill nets | 2.50 | 10 | 0.09 |
| Rock bass | Standard gill nets | 2.00 | 8 | 0.31 |
| Largemouth bass | Standard gill nets | 1.75 | 7 | 1.16 |
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.
Fox Lake is a small, heavily-developed lake. The number of shoreline homes or cottages more than double from 24 in 1966 to 55 in 1999. Fishing pressure has likely increased, as well, and the fish community is showing signs of over fishing.With a few exceptions, fish numbers remain much as they were forty years ago. Northern pike, bluegills, and largemouth bass test net catches remained high in Fox Lake. With fingerling stocking, walleye catches are actually three times as high as they were in 1966 and much above average compared to other similar lakes.Average sizes of the more popular fish species in the community were down. Bluegills and walleyes, especially, showed evidence that larger fish are being harvested by anglers as soon as they reach "keeper" sizes. Since it takes bluegills in Fox Lake about seven years to reach seven inches in length, these fish are not quickly replaced and few (less than 1%) survive to reach eight inches. In the 1960s and 1970s, about 10% of sampled bluegills were 8.0 inches or longer. The good news is that a few larger bluegills and northern pike are still present.This phenomenon is not unique to Fox Lake but will soon require some tough choices (bigger or more fish?, more or fewer regulations?) for Minnesota's anglers. It is a testament to nature's resilience that fish populations have maintained themselves as well as they have despite increasing demand and decreasing habitat.Even though several indicators of water quality show that Fox Lake's is relatively good, there are things riparian owners and other watershed dwellers can do to help sustain quality water, fish populations, and property values. Some of these include: (1) exceeding shoreline setbacks for buildings and septic systems, (2) not fertilizing lawns or using phosphorus free fertilizers, (3) leaving wide shoreline buffer zones of unmowed, natural vegetation, (4) leaving as much aquatic vegetation (especially bulrushes and cattails) intact as possible when obtaining access to open water, (5) actively participating in the lake association, (6) following practices illustrated in the DNR document "Lakescaping for Wildlife and Water Quality" when landscaping shoreline property, and (7) voluntarily releasing larger fish and keeping smaller ones for eating.
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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