Little Mcdonald Lake vs Pelican Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Little Mcdonald Lake and Pelican Lake read the same on nutrients and algae. Both are in Otter Tail County, Minnesota.
Little Mcdonald Lake and Pelican Lake are both in Minnesota — a same-state head-to-head where the comparison comes down to lake-specific differences in depth, watershed, and monitoring history rather than the broader state-level water-quality regime. The readings are close: Little Mcdonald Lake and Pelican Lake sit within a narrow band of each other on phosphorus, chlorophyll-a and clarity. The per-parameter table below shows where the small differences actually live.
With readings this close, the choice between the two lakes turns on non-water-quality factors: depth, fish species, public access, distance from home. The per-lake pages below cover all of those.
Little Mcdonald Lake
Crystal clear, you can see 26.5 ft down.
Pelican Lake
Crystal clear, you can see 16.4 ft down.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Little Mcdonald Lake | Pelican Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Water Clarity | 26.5 ft Better | 16.4 ft |
| Phosphorus | 7 µg/L Better | 15 µg/L |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | 1.8 µg/L Better | 3 µg/L |
| Maximum Depth | 109 ft Better | 55 ft |
| Surface Area | 1,316 acres | 3,962 acres |
| Public Access | Yes | Yes |
| Fish Species | 14 | 20 Better |
| Trophic State | oligotrophic | mesotrophic |
A green ✓ marks the better value for that metric (lower phosphorus / chlorophyll = cleaner; higher Secchi / depth / species count = better). Surface area and trophic state carry no tick — a bigger lake is not a better lake.
Swap a lake
Compare Little Mcdonald Lake or Pelican Lake against a different lake.
Verdict
Both lakes earn the same Grade A. The tiebreakers come down to clarity (Little Mcdonald Lake: 26.5 ft, Pelican Lake: 16.4 ft) and what you want from the lake. Little Mcdonald Lake has fewer fish species than Pelican Lake.
Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.