Moon Lake
Douglas County, Minnesota - DNR stocking history, depth and survey data
Minnesota · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) · DOW 21022600
DNR records show 3 stocking entries at Moon Lake since 2017, most recently walleye fingerlings in 2020 (1,125 fish).
- Moon Lake has 3 DNR stocking records across 3 years (2017-2020): walleye (3).
- The most-stocked species by count is walleye: 3,960 fish on record.
- Maximum depth 38 ft, mean depth 19 ft; surface area 139 acres, 45 littoral acres, 2.7 miles of shoreline, per the DNR lake survey.
- Average water clarity (Secchi depth) 13.6 ft.
- Fish species DNR lists here: black bullhead, black crappie, bluegill, green sunfish, hybrid sunfish, largemouth bass, northern pike, pumpkinseed, walleye, white crappie, white sucker, yellow perch.
- 1 public access on the DNR list.
- Most recent DNR fish survey: (standard survey).
- Douglas County, nearest town Brandon; DNR lake number (DOW) 21022600.
Stocking history
| Year | Species | Size | Number | Pounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Walleye1 | fingerlings | 1,125 | 75.0 |
| 2018 | Walleye1 | fingerlings | 675 | 45.0 |
| 2017 | Walleye1 | fingerlings | 2,160 | 144.0 |
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 |
|---|---|---|
| concrete ramp | Minnesota DNR |
DNR fish survey, 2023
| Species | Gear | Catch per net | Total catch | Avg lb |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Largemouth bass | Standard electrofishing | 87.89 | 104 | 0.81 |
| Black crappie | Standard trap nets | 25.22 | 227 | 0.72 |
| Bluegill | Standard trap nets | 14.56 | 131 | 0.50 |
| Hybrid sunfish | Standard trap nets | 3.56 | 32 | 0.53 |
| Yellow perch | Standard gill nets | 21.00 | 126 | 0.29 |
| Bluegill | Standard gill nets | 20.50 | 123 | 0.14 |
| Northern pike | Standard gill nets | 15.17 | 91 | 1.24 |
| Hybrid sunfish | Standard gill nets | 4.00 | 24 | 0.31 |
| Black crappie | Standard gill nets | 3.67 | 22 | 0.40 |
| Green sunfish | Standard gill nets | 2.17 | 13 | 0.09 |
| Largemouth bass | Standard gill nets | 2.00 | 12 | 0.70 |
| Walleye | Standard gill nets | 0.67 | 4 | 2.37 |
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.
Moon Lake is a 126-acre natural lake located just southeast of Brandon in western Douglas County. Maximum depth is 38.0 feet. Average depth is estimated at 19.0 feet due to steep banks and a rapid drop off along much of the north, west, and south shorelines. Water quality is very good. Summer water clarity measurements have exceeded 15.0 feet over the past four years. Most aquatic plant growth occurs in the shallower northeast and southeast areas of the lake. A standard fisheries survey was completed in 2023 to evaluate abundance and size distribution of gamefish populations. Survey methodology included a spring electrofishing survey, completed May 31, to effectively sample the Largemouth Bass population. The gill netting component of the standard survey was completed June 26-28. During the spring of 2022 a special regulation was implemented that reduced the daily sunfish limit from 20 down to 5. As an evaluation requirement of this special regulation, trap netting was conducted during the spring (May 15-17) when panfish are more susceptible to capture. These sampling practices will be standard protocol for future fisheries surveys on Moon Lake. Largemouth Bass are abundant in Moon Lake. Electrofishing catch rates of Largemouth Bass were the third highest on record. Largemouth Bass growth is slow and on average it takes seven years for bass to reach 12.0 inches. Bass size structure on Moon Lake is poor. Fifty-nine percent of the bass were under 12.0 inches and the largest bass observed from all sampling types was 17.2 inches. Bluegill catch rates were moderate in 2023. Many large Bluegill were observed during the survey. Sixty nine percent of the Bluegill were over 8 inches in length. Growth rates of Bluegill in Moon Lake are fast and 6 year old fish averaged almost 8.5 inches in length. The largest Bluegill observed in the survey was over 10.5 inches. Black Crappie catch rates were high and a large variety of sizes were observed in the survey. Approximately 64% of the fish were greater than 10 inches in length. Black Crappie growth rates are moderate; average length of age 4 fish was 10 inches. The largest Black Crappie in the sample was 14.8 inches. After a decline from 2006 through 2017, Northern Pike catch rates increased to match the record high 15.2 fish/gill net. Average size of pike captures in 2023 remained modest at 17.7 inches. The largest pike capture measured 25.6 inches. Northern Pike catches have varied greatly over time, likely due to overabundance and competition with Largemouth Bass. Walleye are present at low density after the…
Minnesota DNR survey narrative, .
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Stocking rows, depths, accesses and survey figures are Minnesota DNR LakeFinder data as of 2026-09-02. Regulations, slot limits and special rules are on the DNR page linked above, not here.
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