Sunfish

This was the first of two surveys scheduled in the 2013 Sunfish Lake management plan to determine whether a self-sustained walleye population would persist after walleye stocking was discontinued. Walleye were reintroduced in Sunfish Lake in 2000. Based on disappointing results in previous surveys, the 2013 plan concluded stocking in this lake since 2000 had failed, and stocking was discontinued after 2013. The 2015 survey yielded much better results, in terms of walleye catch and size. Walleye were relatively abundant, and their average size was good for a lake of this type. There was some evidence for natural reproduction in some years, but stocked year classes (2008, 2009, 2012, and 2013) accounted for 81 percent of the walleye sampled in 2015. Walleye growth had been about average; six-year-old fish reached an average length of 18.7 inches. When walleye stocking was discontinued, management of Sunfish Lake shifted to northern pike. Northern pike first appeared in Sunfish Lake in 2007, and gill net catches since have not been high. The 2015 gill net catch was the lowest seen in this lake to date, and fell short of the catch goal set in the 2013 plan. Only three northern pike were collected, and although their size was good, they may not have been representative of most of the fish in the lake. The 2015 smallmouth bass gill net catch was similar to catches seen in this lake in the two previous surveys. It appeared the lake might support a fairly high quality population, with no fish smaller than 12 inches sampled. Smallmouth bass were also first seen in Sunfish Lake in 2007. No yellow perch were collected in gill nets or minnow traps in 2015. This marked the first time the species has been absent from a survey catch in this lake since 1957. Yellow perch gill net catches reached 162 fish/set in 1998, but dropped steadily after walleye were stocked (and after northern pike and smallmouth bass became established). Reduced perch abundance will limit forage availability for walleye and northern pike, although walleye may continue to do well on an invertebrate forage base, as they do in many lakes in this area. No new (to this lake) fish species were collected in 2015. White sucker and green sunfish were present, but apparently low in numbers. Minnow traps set along the shore during this survey caught no fish of any kind.

This was the third of three assessments intended to evaluate walleye management (including stocking) in Sunfish Lake. Objectives for the assessments were to determine growth and survival of stocked walleye, and to determine the extent of walleye natural reproduction. When walleye stocking began in Sunfish Lake, yellow perch, white sucker, and green sunfish were the only other fish species known to have been present, and yellow perch were abundant. Since that time, northern pike and smallmouth bass have become established. Both probably entered the lake from Greenwood Lake. Survival of early stockings was apparently low. The first of the three evaluation assessments, done in 2004, failed to collect any walleye from stockings done in 2000-2002. Only yellow perch and white sucker were collected. The second assessment, done in 2007, captured one walleye (from the 2004 year class), but also collected northern pike and smallmouth bass. The walleye gill net catch in 2011 was the highest seen to date in this lake, but remained low for the lake class, and low for any lake expected to support a walleye fishery. The goal established for this lake when walleye stocking began (a walleye gill net catch of 7.0 fish/set) was not met in 2011. Of the four walleye collected, three came from stocked year classes (2009 and 2005), and one was from an unstocked year class (2007). Too few walleye were collected to allow growth rates to be reliably determined. The low walleye catch suggested that survival of stocked fry had probably been poor, while the catch of a single fish from an unstocked year class suggested that some natural reproduction was at least a possibility. The northern pike gill net catch in 2011 was low for a lake of this class; however, the mean weight for fish taken in gill nets was well above the normal range. Northern pike growth had been fast, with three-year-old fish reaching an average length of 23.6 inches by the end of their third year. Fast northern pike growth was probably due to the presence of a good yellow perch forage base. Smallmouth bass were still present in 2011. Their abundance cannot be reliably determined from gill net data alone. The 2011 yellow perch gill net catch was lower than catches observed in 2004 and 2007 (28.00 and 33.50 fish/set, respectively). Predation by northern pike and walleye most likely accounted for the decline.

The long range goal for Sunfish Lake is to establish a walleye population with a minimum gill net catch of 7.0 fish/net. This was the second of three assessments scheduled to determine success of that program. The first, done in 2004, found no walleye; the gill net catch consisted only of white sucker and yellow perch. In this assessment, walleye were found in this lake for the first time since 1958. Despite recent stocking, the gill net catch fell well short of the long range goal for the species, and well below the first quartile for the lake class. The single walleye collected was probably a survivor of the 2004 fry stocking. Management of this lake for walleye has been complicated by recently established northern pike and smallmouth bass populations. Both were collected for the first time in this lake in 2007. Both probably moved into the lake from Greenwood Lake, via the outlet channel for Sunfish Lake. The smallmouth bass gill net catch in 2007 was within the normal range for a lake of this class. As is often the case with a newly-established population, average size of fish collected was high, with fish as large as 17.3 inches taken. The northern pike gill net catch was low, and the catch consisted of just a single year class, perhaps the first off-spring of a small number of colonizing adults. Growth had been fast, no doubt fueled by the excellent yellow perch forage base available in this lake. The yellow perch gil net catch in 2007 was high for a lake of this class, but not for this lake historically, where catches as high as 220 fish/net have been obtained. There were enough yellow perch over eight inches in length to have provided reasonably good perch fishing.

Based on Minnesota DNR survey data, anglers target Splake, Rainbow Trout, Walleye, Northern Pike, and Smallmouth Bass in Sunfish. See the full species list above for catch rates, size structure, and quality scores.

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

Sunfish has a maximum depth of 25 feet and a mean depth of 13.2 feet, per Minnesota DNR data.

The most recent Minnesota DNR survey data for the main sport fish in Sunfish is from 2015. Surveys this old should be treated with some caution — fish populations change over time.

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