Perch Lake

On the LakeGrade scale Perch Lake grades a B, with clarity at 13.6 ft and phosphorus readings still being added placing it above the Wisconsin median. Sub-grades cluster within a single letter of each other, which usually means the lake is in stable trophic balance rather than fighting one specific stressor.

Trophically, Perch Lake reads as oligotrophic — nutrient-poor, clear, and ecologically more sensitive to disturbance than richer lakes. A maximum depth of 21 ft puts Perch Lake in the middle of Wisconsin's depth distribution. Perch Lake is small — 22 acres alongside partial shoreline records — which makes it sensitive to even modest changes in watershed runoff or recreational pressure. Within the 140 graded lakes of Oneida County, Perch Lake sits at rank 112, near the bottom of the county list.

An invasive species record — Chinese Mystery Snail — has been logged at Perch Lake; Wisconsin DNR maintains the official infested-waters list. The fishery is bass-led, with 3 documented species across the lake's records. A documented public access point at Perch Lake makes the lake usable for shore fishing, paddle craft, and trailered boats. Monitoring depth is thin here: the LakeGrade rubric is applied to a small number of sample years, and the grade will be revised as more data accumulates.