Minnesota DNR fisheries surveys · latest July 29, 2024
Species recorded at Muskrat Lake
12 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 Muskrat Lake
No stocking record for Muskrat 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 July 29, 2024 caught 0.50 walleye per gill net at Muskrat Lake.
A DNR fisheries survey reports fish abundance and catch rates, not water quality. LakeQuality shows Muskrat Lake’s water-quality measurements separately, and the water-quality trend over 6 years of monitoring is improving. Catch rate is not a swim clearance and is not a weekly bite report.
DNR Fisheries Survey Summary
8 surveys on file from MN DNR Fisheries. Most recent: 2024-07-29 (Standard Survey).
8 surveys on file · most recent 2024-07-29 (Standard Survey)
| Species | Catch rate (CPUE) | Size | Avg weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bluegill | 45.53 | 4–8 in 2024-07-29 | 0.13 lb |
| Black Bullhead | 18.41 | 7–11 in 2024-07-29 | 0.38 lb |
| Yellow Bullhead | 7.15 | 7–12 in 2024-07-29 | 0.53 lb |
| Yellow Perch | 6.73 | 5 in 2008-07-23 | 0.14 lb |
| Northern Pike | 6.27 | 9–30 in 2024-07-29 | 1.71 lb |
| Pumpkinseed | 5.64 | 3–7 in 2024-07-29 | 0.21 lb |
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.
Bluegill
Black Bullhead
Yellow Bullhead
Yellow Perch
From the 2024-07-29 survey
Muskrat Lake is a 67-acre lake located on the Pelican River between Detroit and Sallie lakes. The lake's west shore consists of a dike which was built during the early 1900s to raise lake levels in Muskrat and Detroit. A lock and dam system to facilitate commercial boat passage was built into the north end of this…
DNR Reports & Resources
Minnesota DNR LakeFinder publishes lake survey, fish stocking, water access, and aquatic plant data for Muskrat Lake. 1 report on file.
These links open on the official state DNR websites (Wisconsin DNR survey PDFs · Minnesota DNR LakeFinder).
- —Fisheries Lake Survey — MuskratFisheries Lake Survey · MN DNR LakeFinder
Common questions
What fish are in Muskrat Lake?
Minnesota DNR's Standard Survey on July 29, 2024 caught 0.50 walleye per gill net at Muskrat Lake. Minnesota DNR lists 12 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 Muskrat Lake last surveyed?
The most recent fisheries survey on file for Muskrat Lake is dated July 29, 2024. 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 Muskrat Lake stocked?
No stocking record for Muskrat 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 Muskrat Lake fishes?
A DNR fisheries survey reports fish abundance and catch rates, not water quality. LakeQuality shows Muskrat Lake’s water-quality measurements separately, and the water-quality trend over 6 years of monitoring is improving. 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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