Tamarac Lake
Otter Tail County, Minnesota - DNR stocking history, depth and survey data
Minnesota · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) · DOW 56093100
DNR records show 10 stocking entries at Tamarac Lake since 2017, most recently black crappie adults in 2025 (200 fish).
- Tamarac Lake has 10 DNR stocking records across 4 years (2017-2025): black crappie (3), bluegill sunfish (3), largemouth bass (2), yellow perch (1), and 1 more species.
- The most-stocked species by count is walleye: 392,000 fish on record.
- Maximum depth 11 ft; surface area 445 acres, 445 littoral acres, 6.1 miles of shoreline, per the DNR lake survey.
- Average water clarity (Secchi depth) 5.8 ft.
- Fish species DNR lists here: black bullhead, black crappie, bluegill, brown bullhead, green sunfish, hybrid sunfish, largemouth bass, northern pike, pumpkinseed, yellow bullhead, yellow perch.
- 1 public access on the DNR list.
- Most recent DNR fish survey: (standard survey).
- Otter Tail County, nearest town Pelican Rapids; DNR lake number (DOW) 56093100.
Stocking history
| Year | Species | Size | Number | Pounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Black Crappie1 | adults | 200 | 100.0 |
| 2025 | Bluegill Sunfish1 | adults | 315 | 70.0 |
| 2025 | Largemouth Bass1 | adults | 37 | 46.2 |
| 2025 | Yellow Perch1 | adults | 490 | 70.0 |
| 2024 | Black Crappie | adults | 150 | 50.0 |
| 2024 | Bluegill Sunfish | adults | 300 | 75.0 |
| 2023 | Black Crappie | adults | 20 | 5.0 |
| 2023 | Bluegill Sunfish | adults | 252 | 63.0 |
| 2023 | Largemouth Bass | adults | 3 | 4.0 |
| 2017 | Walleye | fry | 392,000 | 3.4 |
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, 2017
| Species | Gear | Catch per net | Total catch | Avg lb |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Black bullhead | Standard trap nets | 154.44 | 1,390 | 0.01 |
| Bluegill | Standard trap nets | 19.89 | 179 | 0.20 |
| Pumpkinseed | Standard trap nets | 17.11 | 154 | 0.10 |
| Yellow bullhead | Standard trap nets | 15.78 | 142 | 0.16 |
| Hybrid sunfish | Standard trap nets | 1.56 | 14 | 0.22 |
| Green sunfish | Standard trap nets | 0.89 | 8 | 0.05 |
| Brown bullhead | Standard trap nets | 0.44 | 4 | 0.36 |
| Northern pike | Standard trap nets | 0.44 | 4 | 1.69 |
| Northern pike | Standard gill nets | 17.25 | 69 | 1.60 |
| Bluegill | Standard gill nets | 11.75 | 47 | 0.15 |
| Pumpkinseed | Standard gill nets | 6.75 | 27 | 0.11 |
| Yellow perch | Standard gill nets | 5.25 | 21 | 0.08 |
| Black bullhead | Standard gill nets | 4.75 | 19 | 0.25 |
| Yellow bullhead | Standard gill nets | 4.00 | 16 | 0.13 |
| Black crappie | Standard gill nets | 0.50 | 2 | 0.10 |
| Largemouth bass | Standard gill nets | 0.25 | 1 | 0.99 |
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.
Tamarac Lake is a 392-acre eutrophic (fertile) lake located in northwestern Otter Tail County approximately ten miles north of Pelican Rapids, MN. The immediate watershed is composed primarily of agricultural land interspersed with hardwood woodlots. The maximum depth of Tamarac Lake is 11 feet. The secchi disk reading was 5.9 feet. Previous secchi disk reading have ranged from 4.6 to 8.2 feet. Tamarac Lake has a history of experiencing periodic winterkills which has corresponded to large fluctuations in gamefish abundance. An aeration system was purchased for Tamarac Lake in 2002 to minimize the possibility of winterkill during severe winters; however, it was not operated during the winter of 2013 and Tamarac Lake experienced a significant winterkill. The majority of the shoreline is developed. Homes and cottages compose the majority of the development. A DNR owned concrete public access is located off of County Road 34 along the south shoreline. Main lake shoreline substrates consist primarily of sand and muck. The only marsh areas on the lake are located in two small bays along the west shore of the lake. Hardstem Bulrush stands are located in the middle of the lake and along the northeast shoreline. Stands of Common Cattail are scattered around the entire lake. Emergent plants are important because they provide valuable fish and wildlife habitat and are critical for maintaining good water quality. They protect shorelines from erosion and can even absorb and breakdown pollutants from the water. Emergent plants provide spawning areas for fish species such as Northern Pike, Largemouth Bass and panfish. They also are important nursery areas for all species of fish. Because of their ecological importance, emergent plants may not be removed without a DNR permit. Tamarac Lake can be ecologically classified as a bass-panfish type of lake and this is reflected in the assemblage of the fish community. Northern Pike, Largemouth Bass, Black Crappie, and Bluegill are the dominant gamefish species. A very high-density Northern Pike population exists. Age data indicate that pike reproduction is consistently good. Pike ranged in length from 15.8 to 30.4 inches with an average length and weight of 20.0 inches and 1.6 pounds. Pike attain an average length of 23.7 inches at four years of age. Bluegills are abundant. Bluegills sampled via trap net ranged in length from 3.5 to 10.2 inches with a mean length of 6.3 inches. Fifteen percent of the Bluegills were 7.0 inches or greater in length. Bluegills attain a mean length of 6.7 inches at age-III. Black Crappie and…
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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