Scotch Lake
Le Sueur County, Minnesota - DNR stocking history, depth and survey data
Minnesota · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) · DOW 40010900
DNR records show 9 stocking entries at Scotch Lake since 2016, most recently walleye fry in 2025 (141,250 fish).
- Scotch Lake has 9 DNR stocking records across 7 years (2016-2025): walleye (6), northern pike (2), yellow perch (1).
- The most-stocked species by count is walleye: 2,208,750 fish on record.
- Maximum depth 11 ft; surface area 598 acres, 596 littoral acres, 4.5 miles of shoreline, per the DNR lake survey.
- Average water clarity (Secchi depth) 4.9 ft.
- Fish species DNR lists here: black bullhead, common carp, northern pike, walleye, yellow perch.
- 1 public access on the DNR list.
- Most recent DNR fish survey: (targeted survey).
- Le Sueur County, nearest town Cleveland; DNR lake number (DOW) 40010900.
Depth map
Bathymetric contours from the Minnesota DNR lake survey; depths in feet. Simplified for the web; not for navigation.
Stocking history
| Year | Species | Size | Number | Pounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Walleye | fry | 141,250 | 1.2 |
| 2024 | Walleye | fry | 141,250 | 1.1 |
| 2023 | Walleye | fry | 141,250 | 1.1 |
| 2021 | Walleye | fry | 595,000 | 5.6 |
| 2019 | Walleye | fry | 595,000 | 4.8 |
| 2018 | Walleye | fry | 595,000 | 5.0 |
| 2016 | Northern Pike | fry | 276,381 | 4.3 |
| 2016 | Northern Pike | adults | 207 | 295.0 |
| 2016 | Yellow Perch | adults | 626 | 243.1 |
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 |
|---|---|---|
| O | Minnesota DNR | - NORTHWEST SHORE |
DNR fish survey, 2023
| Species | Gear | Catch per net | Total catch | Avg lb |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Black bullhead | Standard gill nets | 61.00 | 122 | 0.49 |
| Walleye | Standard gill nets | 24.50 | 49 | 0.12 |
| Yellow perch | Standard gill nets | 13.00 | 26 | 0.20 |
| Golden shiner | Standard gill nets | 4.00 | 8 | 0.10 |
| Common carp | Standard gill nets | 1.50 | 3 | 0.45 |
| Northern pike | Standard gill nets | 0.50 | 1 | 1.03 |
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.
Scotch Lake is a 565-acre lake located in Le Sueur County near the city of Cleveland. A public access is located on the northwest side of the lake, just off 271st Avenue. Scotch Lake is a shallow basin with a maximum depth of 11 feet. Scotch Lake experienced a strong winterkill during the winter of 2022-2023. Members of the public reported dead fish along the shoreline following ice out. High water clarity and large amounts of aquatic vegetation pointed toward a mostly fishless community so it was decided a targeted survey would be conducted the week of August 23, 2023. This targeted survey consisted of deploying 2 gill nets to monitor the fish community. A targeted survey is generally used for sampling a specific kind of fish or time of year (i.e., spawning season, fall season, etc.) unlike a standard survey which samples a wider range of fish species during the summer months using standard methods (i.e., standard time of year, set sampling stations, taking water clarity readings and oxygen/temperature profiles, etc.) and gears (i.e., lake survey gillnets, trap nets, and spring electrofishing for Largemouth Bass). Results from this targeted survey should not be compared to results from standard surveys. Black Bullheads were the most abundant species in the nets. A total of 122 black bullhead were collected. Black Bullhead ranged in length from 6.6 to 12.5 inches, with an average length of 10.6 inches. Black Bullheads thrive in shallow lakes with high productivity, so their high abundance in Scotch Lake is expected. Common Carp had become well established in recent years. Common Carp abundance was low in 2023 with 3 individuals sampled for a catch rate of 1.5/gill net. Common Carp averaged 9.2 inches in length. Yellow Perch were sampled at a rate of 13/gillnet in 2023. These fish ranged in size from 6.5 inches to 9.1 inches and averaged 7.5 inches in total length. One northern pike was sampled in 2023, it was 15.6 inches in length. Golden Shiners were sampled at a rate of 4.0/ gill net. They ranged in size from 6.0 inches to 7.4 inches and averaged 6.4 inches in total length. Approximately 141,000 Walleye fry were stocked in 2023 following the winter kill. Walleye were the primary predator fish species observed during the 2023 survey. The gillnets averaged 24.5/net. The length of walleye ranged from 6.7 to 9.1 inches and averaged over 7.5 inches. A walleye maintenance stocking program has been in place at Scotch Lake for years to sustain the population.
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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