Widow Lake
Cass County, Minnesota - DNR stocking history, depth and survey data
Minnesota · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) · DOW 11027300
DNR records show 5 stocking entries at Widow Lake since 2017, most recently walleye fingerlings in 2025 (1,850 fish).
- Widow Lake has 5 DNR stocking records across 5 years (2017-2025): walleye (5).
- The most-stocked species by count is walleye: 9,481 fish on record.
- Maximum depth 46 ft; surface area 198 acres, 74 littoral acres, 3.0 miles of shoreline, per the DNR lake survey.
- Average water clarity (Secchi depth) 16.0 ft.
- Fish species DNR lists here: black crappie, bluegill, bowfin (dogfish), brown bullhead, hybrid sunfish, largemouth bass, northern pike, pumpkinseed, rock bass, walleye, yellow bullhead, yellow perch.
- 1 public access on the DNR list.
- Most recent DNR fish survey: (targeted survey).
- Cass County, nearest town Longville; DNR lake number (DOW) 11027300.
Depth map
Bathymetric contours from the Minnesota DNR lake survey mapped 6/18/1969 (orig map); depths in feet. Simplified for the web; not for navigation.
Stocking history
| Year | Species | Size | Number | Pounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Walleye2 | fingerlings | 1,850 | 74.0 |
| 2023 | Walleye | fingerlings | 2,074 | 74.0 |
| 2021 | Walleye | fingerlings | 303 | 52.0 |
| 2019 | Walleye2 | fingerlings | 1,776 | 74.0 |
| 2017 | Walleye | fingerlings | 3,478 | 74.0 |
2 fish purchased by the DNR for stocking.
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 | LOCATED ON SOUTH END OF LAKE OFF CO RD 46. |
DNR fish survey, 2022
| Species | Gear | Catch per net | Total catch | Avg lb |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bluegill | Backpack electrofishing | 72.73 | 100 | 0.00 |
| Rock bass | Backpack electrofishing | 12.36 | 17 | 0.00 |
| Yellow bullhead | Backpack electrofishing | 5.09 | 7 | 0.00 |
| Brassy minnow | Backpack electrofishing | 3.64 | 5 | 0.00 |
| BCS | Backpack electrofishing | 2.91 | 4 | 0.00 |
| Tadpole madtom | Backpack electrofishing | 1.45 | 2 | 0.00 |
| Northern pike | Backpack electrofishing | 1.45 | 2 | 0.00 |
| Pumpkinseed | Backpack electrofishing | 0.73 | 1 | 0.00 |
| Bluegill | Standard trap nets | 40.67 | 366 | 0.25 |
| Black crappie | Standard trap nets | 7.67 | 69 | 0.42 |
| Pumpkinseed | Standard trap nets | 4.89 | 44 | 0.25 |
| Yellow bullhead | Standard trap nets | 3.33 | 30 | 0.55 |
| Largemouth bass | Standard trap nets | 1.44 | 13 | 0.61 |
| Rock bass | Standard trap nets | 1.11 | 10 | 0.28 |
| Northern pike | Standard trap nets | 0.78 | 7 | 0.45 |
| Bowfin (dogfish) | Standard trap nets | 0.78 | 7 | 4.31 |
| BCS | 50-ft beach seine | 38.00 | 266 | 0.00 |
| Bluegill | 50-ft beach seine | 18.43 | 129 | 0.00 |
| Brassy minnow | 50-ft beach seine | 4.29 | 30 | 0.00 |
| Blacknose shiner | 50-ft beach seine | 3.57 | 25 | 0.00 |
| BKF | 50-ft beach seine | 1.71 | 12 | 0.00 |
| Pumpkinseed | 50-ft beach seine | 1.14 | 8 | 0.00 |
| Rock bass | 50-ft beach seine | 1.00 | 7 | 0.00 |
| Largemouth bass | 50-ft beach seine | 0.57 | 4 | 0.00 |
| Bluegill | 15-ft beach seine | 2.00 | 4 | 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 Widow Lake was conducted on June 21-23, 2022 by Index of Biological Integrity (IBI) Program Staff. Sampling sites were evenly spaced around the lake and each was sampled by backpack electrofishing and seining with a 50-foot seine, where possible. Backpack electrofishing was completed at all ten sampling stations, but one station was sampled from the boat due to site conditions. Similarly, a 50-foot seine was used to sample seven stations, a 15-foot seine was used to sample two stations, and site conditions prevented the use of seines at one station. Nearshore sampling captured 15 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 no species that are tolerant of disturbance. A concurrent summer trap net survey was conducted by IBI Program Staff. Nine trap nets were set along the shoreline and in shallow offshore locations that encompassed multiple habitat types. Bluegill, Black Crappie, and Yellow Bullhead comprised a majority of the trap net catch by number and Bluegill, Bowfin, and Black Crappie comprised a majority of the catch by biomass. The number of Bluegill sampled per net was above the 50% quartile for similar Lake Class 31 lakes and the average length was 6.8 inches, with 42% over 7 inches. The nearshore and trap net data were combined with gill net data from an August 2020 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, Iowa Darter, and Rock Bass), while other species are tolerant of degraded conditions (e.g., Green Sunfish). 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 indicates Widow Lake is healthy as indicated by an FIBI score, well above the impairment 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 Leech Lake River Watershed assessment process…
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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