West Lake Sylvia

Wright County, Minnesota - DNR stocking history, depth and survey data

Minnesota · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) · DOW 86027900

DNR records show 14 stocking entries at West Lake Sylvia since 2016, most recently walleye fingerlings in 2024 (2,902 fish).

• West Lake Sylvia has 14 DNR stocking records across 5 years (2016-2024): walleye (14).
• The most-stocked species by count is walleye: 145,755 fish on record.
• Maximum depth 97 ft, mean depth 33 ft; surface area 904 acres, 244 littoral acres, 12.7 miles of shoreline, per the DNR lake survey.
• Average water clarity (Secchi depth) 20.0 ft.
• Fish species DNR lists here: black bullhead, black crappie, bluegill, bowfin (dogfish), brown bullhead, common carp, green sunfish, hybrid sunfish, largemouth bass, northern pike, pumpkinseed, rock bass, and 3 more.
• 1 public access on the DNR list.
• Most recent DNR fish survey: July 21, 2025 (targeted survey).
• Wright County, nearest town South Haven; DNR lake number (DOW) 86027900.

Depth map

Bathymetric contours from the Minnesota DNR lake survey mapped 6/10/1959 (orig map); depths in feet. Simplified for the web; not for navigation.

Stocking history

² fish purchased by the DNR for stocking.

Public accesses

DNR fish survey, 2025

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 West Lake Sylvia was conducted on July 21, 2025 by Sauk Rapids fisheries staff. Sampling sites were evenly spaced around the lake and each was sampled by backpack electrofishing and seining with a 50-foot or 15-foot seine, where possible. Backpack electrofishing was completed at 12 sampling stations, but two stations were sampled from the boat due to site conditions. Similarly, a 50-foot seine was used to sample four stations, a 15-foot seine was used at eight stations, and site conditions prevented the use of seines at two stations. Nearshore sampling captured 23 species of fish including six species that are intolerant of disturbance (i.e., Banded Killifish, Blackchin Shiner, Blacknose Shiner, Iowa Darter, Least Darter and Rock Bass) and two that are tolerant of disturbance (i.e., Common Carp and Green Sunfish). The nearshore data were combined with trap net and gill net data from a standard survey to describe the fish community and provide a Fish-based IBI (FIBI) score. The FIBI uses fish community data to measure a lake's health, and the types of fish species present can help identify any stressors that may be negatively affecting the lake environment. In Minnesota lakes, certain fish species cannot survive without clean water and a healthy habitat (e.g., Blackchin Shiner and Least Darter), while other species are tolerant of degraded conditions (e.g., Black Bullhead and Common Carp). The FIBI score, composed of several fish community diversity and composition metrics, indicates the overall health of a lake by comparing it to what is expected for a healthy lake. For additional information on the FIBI, search for "lake index of biological integrity" on the mndnr.gov website. Data from this survey suggests that West Lake Sylvia is in good health as indicated by the FIBI score that exceeds the threshold for aquatic life use determined for similar lakes. Data from this survey will contribute biological information about the health of the fish community to the North Fork Crow River Watershed assessment process in coordination with MN Pollution Control Agency.

Minnesota DNR survey narrative, July 21, 2025.

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