Prairie Lake (St. Louis County)
St. Louis County, Minnesota - DNR stocking history, depth and survey data
Minnesota · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) · DOW 69084800
DNR records show 5 stocking entries at Prairie Lake (St. Louis County) since 2017, most recently walleye fry in 2025 (280,000 fish).
- Prairie Lake (St. Louis County) has 5 DNR stocking records across 5 years (2017-2025): walleye (5).
- The most-stocked species by count is walleye: 1,420,000 fish on record.
- Maximum depth 47 ft; surface area 794 acres, 272 littoral acres, 8.2 miles of shoreline, per the DNR lake survey.
- Average water clarity (Secchi depth) 4.6 ft.
- Fish species DNR lists here: black crappie, bluegill, bowfin (dogfish), brown bullhead, hybrid sunfish, largemouth bass, northern pike, pumpkinseed, rock bass, shorthead redhorse, tullibee (cisco), walleye, and 3 more.
- 1 public access on the DNR list.
- Most recent DNR fish survey: (targeted survey).
- St. Louis County, nearest town Flood Wood; DNR lake number (DOW) 69084800.
Depth map
Bathymetric contours from the Minnesota DNR lake survey mapped 7/1/1948 (orig map); depths in feet. Simplified for the web; not for navigation.
Stocking history
| Year | Species | Size | Number | Pounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Walleye | fry | 280,000 | 2.6 |
| 2023 | Walleye | fry | 300,000 | 3.0 |
| 2021 | Walleye | fry | 270,000 | 2.7 |
| 2019 | Walleye | fry | 300,000 | 2.5 |
| 2017 | Walleye | fry | 270,000 | 2.7 |
Public accesses
| Type | Owner | Where |
|---|---|---|
| concrete ramp | Minnesota DNR | - State owned concrete back in ramp is located on the east bay off State Highway 73. |
DNR fish survey, 2025
| Species | Gear | Catch per net | Total catch | Avg lb |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yellow perch | 50-ft beach seine | 149.00 | 1,639 | 0.00 |
| Golden shiner | 50-ft beach seine | 49.73 | 547 | 0.00 |
| Rock bass | 50-ft beach seine | 16.82 | 185 | 0.00 |
| Largemouth bass | 50-ft beach seine | 10.45 | 115 | 0.00 |
| Bluegill | 50-ft beach seine | 10.27 | 113 | 0.00 |
| Black crappie | 50-ft beach seine | 7.82 | 86 | 0.00 |
| Spottail shiner | 50-ft beach seine | 7.18 | 79 | 0.00 |
| White sucker | 50-ft beach seine | 5.36 | 59 | 0.00 |
| Johnny darter | Backpack electrofishing | 101.05 | 160 | 0.00 |
| Yellow perch | Backpack electrofishing | 53.68 | 85 | 0.00 |
| Rock bass | Backpack electrofishing | 29.05 | 46 | 0.00 |
| Yellow bullhead | Backpack electrofishing | 27.16 | 43 | 0.00 |
| Central mudminnow | Backpack electrofishing | 21.47 | 34 | 0.00 |
| Mottled sculpin | Backpack electrofishing | 18.32 | 29 | 0.00 |
| Tadpole madtom | Backpack electrofishing | 12.63 | 20 | 0.00 |
| Largemouth bass | Backpack electrofishing | 10.74 | 17 | 0.00 |
| Rock bass | 15-ft beach seine | 34.00 | 34 | 0.00 |
| Golden shiner | 15-ft beach seine | 6.00 | 6 | 0.00 |
| Bluegill | 15-ft beach seine | 2.00 | 2 | 0.00 |
| Yellow perch | 15-ft beach seine | 1.00 | 1 | 0.00 |
| Yellow perch | Trapnet - Mini Fyke | 24.00 | 336 | 0.00 |
| Bluegill | Trapnet - Mini Fyke | 14.36 | 201 | 0.00 |
| Pumpkinseed | Trapnet - Mini Fyke | 2.79 | 39 | 0.00 |
| Golden shiner | Trapnet - Mini Fyke | 2.50 | 35 | 0.00 |
| Yellow bullhead | Trapnet - Mini Fyke | 2.21 | 31 | 0.00 |
| Largemouth bass | Trapnet - Mini Fyke | 1.64 | 23 | 0.00 |
| Rock bass | Trapnet - Mini Fyke | 1.50 | 21 | 0.00 |
| Black crappie | Trapnet - Mini Fyke | 1.07 | 15 | 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 Prairie Lake was conducted on August 13th-20th, 2025, by Lake Biological Monitoring and Assessment (LBMA) program staff. Sampling sites were evenly spaced around the lake, and each was sampled by backpack electrofishing, mini-fyke nets, and seining with a 50-foot or 15-foot seine, where possible. Backpack electrofishing was completed at 14 sampling stations. Similarly, a 1/8" mesh mini-fyke net was used to sample 14 stations. Finally, a 50-foot seine was used to sample 11 stations, and a 15-foot seine was used at one station. Nearshore sampling captured 22 species of fish. The nearshore data along with gill net and standard trap net data will be used to develop fish community models for Northeast Minnesota lakes, which will be used to measure lake health. These models may function similarly to fish IBI models developed for lakes across much of the rest of the state. For additional information, search for "lake index of biological integrity" on the mndnr.gov website. You can help protect the fish community in Prairie Lake by reducing runoff, maintaining natural shorelines, and preventing the spread of invasive species.
Minnesota DNR survey narrative, .
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