Island

Island is a 1,142-acre, class 25 lake located in central Becker County approximately 5.5 miles northwest of Snellman. The lake offers a quality multi-species fishery for Black Crappie, Bluegill, and Smallmouth Bass. Water quality and fish habitat in Island Lake are also well suited for Walleyes, with natural reproduction sustaining this species. No Walleye stocking has been done since 1985 and Island Lake is one of only three lakes in the Detroit Lakes Management Area to have a Walleye population entirely sustained by natural reproduction. A reduced daily limit regulation of 10 Bluegill was implemented in March 2022. The gill net catch rate for Walleye in 2023 was 17 fish per net. This is just above the lake's long-term average of 16 fish per net. The average length of Walleyes sampled in 2023 was 16 inches and lengths ranged from eight to 27 inches. The age frequency of sampled Walleye was mostly comprised of young fish, with several good year classes shaping up to provide quality fishing in the future. Gill net catches of Northern Pike have historically been quite stable. The catch rate in 2023 was four fish per net, which was the highest on record, and well above the historical average. Pike tend to be on the smaller side in Island Lake, and lengths of pike ranged from 17 to 27 inches with an average length of 20 inches in 2023. Trap nets captured only nine Bluegill per net in 2023. This catch rate was well below the lake's average catch of 31 fish per net. Bluegill in trap nets averaged five inches in length and ranged from 3 to 10 inches. Gill nets also captured a fair number of Bluegill, despite not being a standard method for catching Bluegill. Their average size was bigger than trap nets at 8 ½ inches. The primary goal of the Bluegill special regulation that was implemented in March 2022 is to maintain the quality Bluegill population in Island Lake. Other sunfish species observed during the survey in 2023 included Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, and Black Crappie. Historically, the numbers of Largemouth Bass and Black Crappie captured during fish surveys in Island Lake have been quite low, and 2023 was no exception. The size of fish that were observed was 14 to 16 inches for Largemouth Bass and 5 to 13 inches for Black Crappie. Smallmouth Bass numbers observed in gill nets reached a new record at seven smallmouth per net. This is also well above the historical average of two fish per net. The mean length of Smallmouth Bass was 13 inches and lengths ranged from five to 18 inches. The Yellow Perch gill net catch rate declined yet again to just over two fish per net in 2023, the second lowest rate recorded. The lake's historical average is almost 19 fish per set. Lengths of sampled perch ranged from five to 13 inches and averaged seven inches. Other fish species observed during the survey included Brown Bullhead, hybrid sunfish, Pumpkinseed, Rock Bass, White Sucker, and Yellow Bullhead.

A targeted survey of nearshore fish species in Island Lake was conducted on July 5-6, 2023, by Index of Biological Integrity (IBI) Program staff. Sampling sites were evenly spaced around the lake, and each was sampled by backpack electrofishing and seining with a 50-foot or 15-foot seine, where possible. Backpack electrofishing was completed at all 14 sampling stations, but two stations were sampled from the boat due to site conditions. Similarly, a 50-foot seine was used to sample 11 stations, a 15-foot seine was used to sample one station, and site conditions prevented the use of a seine at two stations. Nearshore sampling captured 23 species of fish including five species that are intolerant of disturbance (i.e., Blackchin Shiner, Iowa Darter, Mimic Shiner, Smallmouth Bass, and Rock Bass) and two that are tolerant of disturbance (i.e., Fathead Minnow and Green Sunfish). The nearshore data was combined with gill net and trap net data from an August 2023 survey to describe the fish community and provide a Fish-based IBI (FIBI) score. The FIBI uses fish community data to measure a lake's health, and the types of fish species present can help identify any stressors that may be negatively affecting the lake environment. In Minnesota lakes, certain fish species cannot survive without clean water and a healthy habitat (e.g., Blackchin Shiner, Iowa Darter, and Rock Bass), while other species are tolerant of degraded conditions (e.g., Black Bullhead, Fathead Minnow, and Green Sunfish). The FIBI score, composed of several fish community diversity and composition metrics, indicates the overall health of a lake by comparing it to what is expected for a healthy lake. For additional information on the FIBI, search for "lake index of biological integrity" on the mndnr.gov website. Data from this survey indicates Island Lake is in good health as indicated by an FIBI score above the impairment threshold for aquatic life use determined for similar lakes. These results are similar to the previous assessment which determined Island Lake fully supported aquatic life use based on the FIBI. Data from this survey will contribute biological information about the health of the fish community to the Ottertail River Watershed assessment process in coordination with MN Pollution Control Agency.

Island Lake is a 1,179-acre lake located in central Becker County. The lake possesses excellent spawning habitat well suited for Walleye reproduction. This survey was performed in early August and utilized gill nets with the intention of evaluating the Walleye population in Island Lake. Walleye gill net catch rates have remained stable in Island Lake dating back to 1986. On average, approximately 13 Walleye were caught per gill net in the 2020 survey. The average length of Walleye sampled in 2020 was 15.0 inches and Walleye ranged in length from 4.7 to 26.3 inches. Walleye between 12 to 14 inches were most abundant, accounting for about 38% of the total Walleye catch. Island Lake continues to be only one of three lakes in the Detroit Lakes Fisheries Management Area that supports a Walleye population sustained by natural reproduction. Net catches of Northern Pike have increased slightly in recent surveys, but remain low relative to many surrounding lakes of similar size. The 2020 catch rate of Northern Pike was about two pike per net. Pike sampled in 2020 measured between 18.4 and 23.3 inches, with an average length of 21 inches. In the 2020 survey, about two Yellow Perch were caught per gill net, below the lake's historic average of 10 perch per net. Sampled perch averaged 7.2 inches in length, and ranged from 5.6 to 12.4 inches. The 2020 survey did not utilize a sampling gear that targeted panfish species, but bass and panfish comprise a large portion of the fish community in Island Lake. Panfish catch was dominated by Bluegill (58 total) and Smallmouth Bass (28 total). Additional species sampled included White Sucker, Bullhead (Brown and Yellow), and Rock Bass.

Based on Minnesota DNR survey data, anglers target Walleye, Rock Bass, Bluegill, Largemouth Bass, and Black Crappie in Island. See the full species list above for catch rates, size structure, and quality scores.

Minnesota DNR records list public access for Island. Check the DNR LakeFinder page for the launch type and directions before you go.

Island has a maximum depth of 38 feet, per Minnesota DNR data.

The most recent Minnesota DNR survey data for the main sport fish in Island is from 2023.

No invasive species are on record for Island in Minnesota DNR data. Always clean, drain, and dry your equipment to help keep it that way.