Pelican Lake vs Stalker Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Pelican Lake reads lower on nutrients and algae than Stalker Lake. Both are in Otter Tail County, Minnesota.
Pelican Lake and Stalker 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. These two sit close on the readings, Pelican Lake versus Stalker Lake. The deciding factors for a recreational visitor are likely physical (depth, access, fish species) rather than water-quality differences.
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.
Pelican Lake
Crystal clear, you can see 16.4 ft down.
Stalker Lake
Murky, only visible to about 6.6 ft.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Pelican Lake | Stalker Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Water Clarity | 16.4 ft Better | 6.6 ft |
| Phosphorus | 15 µg/L Better | 22 µg/L |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | 3 µg/L Better | 7.1 µg/L |
| Maximum Depth | 55 ft | 95 ft Better |
| Surface Area | 3,962 acres | 1,357 acres |
| Public Access | Yes | Yes |
| Fish Species | 20 Better | 17 |
| Trophic State | mesotrophic | 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 Pelican Lake or Stalker Lake against a different lake.
Verdict
Pelican Lake reads lower on nutrients and algae than Stalker Lake. Water clarity: 16.4 ft vs 6.6 ft. For fishing diversity, Pelican Lake also leads with 20 species.
Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.