Brown Bullhead Lakes in Minnesota

Found in 837 Minnesota lakes · 4 in North Dakota

Brown Bullhead is a catfish — bottom-feeding, warm-water-tolerant, often found in larger river-connected lakes. Documented in 4 lakes across Minnesota. Brown Bullhead is narrowly distributed — only 4 lakes in North Dakota have a documented record. The constraint is usually habitat: cold water, specific depth profile, or river connection.

Catfish-bearing lakes are often productive systems — the kind where the fish do well even when clarity does not. Cross-reference the Brown Bullhead lake list below against the LakeGrade rubric: lakes with both an A or B grade and Brown Bullhead documented are the best places to start for recreational targeting.

837

Minnesota Lakes

Avg. Grade

295

Grade A Lakes

Counties

Best Brown Bullhead Lakes in Minnesota

Rank	Lake	County	Grade	Clarity	Depth
1	East Fox Lake	Crow Wing	A	16.4 ft	65 ft
2	North Long Lake	Crow Wing	A	15.1 ft	97 ft
3	Big Sugar Bush Lake	Becker	A	16.5 ft	42 ft
4	Horseshoe Lake	Cass	A	21 ft	51 ft
5	Long Lake	Cass	A	21.5 ft	115 ft
6	Long Lake	Clearwater	A	20.5 ft	80 ft
7	Long Lake	Beltrami	A	20 ft	87 ft
8	Long Lake	Becker	A	19.3 ft	61 ft
9	Long Lake	Cass	A	17 ft	37 ft
10	Long Lake	Itasca	A	16.9 ft	85 ft
11	Dead Lake	Hubbard	A	16 ft	34 ft
12	Ossawinnamakee Lake	Crow Wing	A	20 ft	63 ft
13	Clear Lake	Aitkin	A	15 ft	24 ft
14	Clear Lake	Itasca	A	14.9 ft	30 ft
15	West Fox Lake	Crow Wing	A	15 ft	55 ft
16	Spearhead Lake	Hubbard	A	15 ft	81 ft
17	Ida Lake	Douglas	A	16.4 ft	106 ft
18	Star Lake	Otter Tail	A	17 ft	94 ft
19	Upper Maple Lake	Wright	A	17.2 ft	76 ft
20	Fish Lake	Otter Tail	A	18 ft	69 ft
21	Birch Lake	Wright	A	15 ft	52 ft
22	Girl Lake	Cass	A	17.6 ft	81 ft
23	Little Toad Lake	Becker	A	15 ft	65 ft
24	Charlotte Lake	Wright	A	17.1 ft	46 ft
25	Crooked Lake	Stearns	A	15.5 ft	35 ft
26	Crooked Lake	Crow Wing	A	15 ft	54 ft
27	Cedar Lake	Morrison	A	16.2 ft	88 ft
28	Pelican Lake	Otter Tail	A	16.4 ft	55 ft
29	Lower Bottle Lake	Hubbard	A	15 ft	110 ft
30	Big Pine Lake	Aitkin	A	17 ft	78 ft
31	Strawberry Lake	Becker	A	17.5 ft	40 ft
32	Alexander Lake	Morrison	A	16.5 ft	64 ft
33	Gull Lake	Cass	A	15 ft	80 ft
34	Lower Hay Lake	Crow Wing	A	18.5 ft	100 ft
35	Unnamed Lake	Otter Tail	A	15.1 ft	95 ft
36	Trout Lake	Itasca	A	16 ft	135 ft
37	Cowdry Lake	Douglas	A	17.1 ft	52 ft
38	Blue Lake	Hubbard	A	17.3 ft	84 ft
39	Partridge Lake	Crow Wing	A	16.2 ft	42 ft
40	Sand Lake	Cass	A	20 ft	54 ft
41	Andrusia Lake	Beltrami	A	15.1 ft	60 ft
42	Big Mcdonald Lake	Otter Tail	A	17.4 ft	46 ft
43	Island Lake	Cass	A	15.5 ft	45 ft
44	Island Lake	Becker	A	15 ft	38 ft
45	Island Lake	Crow Wing	A	15.1 ft	76 ft
46	Island Lake	Cass	A	17.5 ft	40 ft
47	Island Lake	Hubbard	A	16.4 ft	32 ft
48	Moose Lake	Beltrami	A	15.1 ft	71 ft
49	Lizzie Lake	Otter Tail	A	16.4 ft	66 ft
50	Turtle Lake	Becker	A	23 ft	73 ft

Showing top 50 of 837 lakes.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many Minnesota lakes have brown bullhead?

Brown Bullhead are found in 837 lakes in Minnesota. The average water quality grade of these lakes is B (Good).

What are the best brown bullhead lakes in Minnesota?

The best brown bullhead lakes in Minnesota by water quality are East Fox Lake, North Long Lake, Big Sugar Bush Lake, Horseshoe Lake, Long Lake.

Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.