Minnesota DNR fisheries surveys · latest September 18, 2025
Species recorded at Cass Lake
21 species on the Minnesota DNR list for this lake. A species on the list has been recorded here; it does not mean it is catchable today or in every part of the lake.
Stocking at Cass Lake
No stocking record for Cass Lake appears in the Minnesota DNR material on file. That is an absence in the published record, not a confirmation that the lake is unstocked — some waters are managed as naturally reproducing and never appear in a stocking list at all.
Survey results in full
Minnesota DNR's Standard Survey on September 18, 2025 caught 7.80 walleye per gill net at Cass Lake. Length samples in the latest survey that recorded them ran 8–28 inches.
A DNR fisheries survey reports fish abundance and catch rates, not water quality. LakeQuality shows Cass Lake’s water-quality measurements separately. Catch rate is not a swim clearance and is not a weekly bite report.
DNR Fisheries Survey Summary
38 surveys on file from MN DNR Fisheries. Most recent: 2025-09-18 (Standard Survey).
38 surveys on file · most recent 2025-09-18 (Standard Survey)
| Species | Catch rate (CPUE) | Size | Avg weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yellow Perch | 234.53 | 5–12 in 2025-09-18 | 0.18 lb |
| Walleye | 21.07 | 8–28 in 2025-09-18 | 0.95 lb |
| Bluntnose Minnow | 13.08 |
CPUE = catch per unit effort, fish caught per net per set in a standardised survey. It measures abundance, not size, and is not a weekly bite report.
Length Distributions
Number of fish caught at each inch class in the most recent survey that recorded lengths. Red dashed line marks an approximate trophy threshold for that species.
Yellow Perch
Walleye
From the 2025-09-18 survey
Cass Lake is a nearly 16,000 acre lake and is the largest lake in the Cass Lake chain, which altogether includes over 25,000 acres of connected waters. The lake has a mix of expansive, shallow flats and deeper water with lots of underwater structure. Walleye, Yellow Perch, and Muskellunge are the most sought-after…
Common questions
What fish are in Cass Lake?
Minnesota DNR's Standard Survey on September 18, 2025 caught 7.80 walleye per gill net at Cass Lake. Length samples in the latest survey that recorded them ran 8–28 inches. Minnesota DNR lists 21 species for the lake in total. Those are survey results, not a catch report: a net set on one date measures what was in that net.
When was Cass Lake last surveyed?
The most recent fisheries survey on file for Cass Lake is dated September 18, 2025. Survey intervals vary by lake and by species; a gap of several years between surveys is normal and does not mean the record is missing.
Is Cass Lake stocked?
No stocking record for Cass Lake appears in the Minnesota DNR material on file. That is not the same as a confirmed unstocked lake: it means no stocking document was published for it in the records this page draws on.
Do the water-quality readings tell me how Cass Lake fishes?
A DNR fisheries survey reports fish abundance and catch rates, not water quality. LakeQuality shows Cass Lake’s water-quality measurements separately. Catch rate is not a swim clearance and is not a weekly bite report.
Before you eat what you catch
Water-quality readings are not a consumption advisory. Mercury and PCB advice for Minnesota waters comes from MDH, and it is issued per species and per size class: a lake with clear, low-nutrient water can still carry a meal limit on larger predator fish.
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