Marion

Lake Marion is a 530 acre class 35 lake in western Dakota County. Lake Marion is primarily managed for Walleye, and secondarily for Largemouth Bass, Northern Pike, and Bluegill. The City of Lakeville owns and maintains two park areas in the lake - Antler's Park on the SE corner and Casperson Park on the west side of the lake. The City of Lakeville operates a winter aeration system and fishing pier. Minnesota DOT has developed a small parking area along the east frontage road of Interstate 35. This has proved to be a popular shore fishing spot. Walleye were sampled at 0.50 fish per gill net set, which is below average for abundance for lakes similar to Marion. The average size Walleye was 22.5 inches. Northern Pike were sampled in average abundance at 5.25 per gill net and the average pike measured 22.8 inches. Lake Marion is in Southern Zone for Northern Pike management where a harvest limit of two fish with a minimum size of 24 inches is in effect. Largemouth Bass were sampled within a normal range for similar lakes. Bluegill Sunfish were sampled in the normal range but with a small average size of 4.8 inches. Likewise, the Black Crappie, Pumpkinseed, Hybrid Sunfish were sampled in low numbers but within normal abundances and small average size. Both Yellow and Brown Bullheads were sampled in the gill nets with catch rates of 3.25/set and 3.38/set respectively and within a normal range for lakes similar to Marion. Yellow Bullheads had a mean length of 8.65 inches and Brown Bullheads mean length was 11.1 inches.

Lake Marion is a 530 acre lake located in western Dakota County. It is primarily managed for Walleye, and secondarily for Largemouth Bass, and Bluegill. The 2021 spring trap netting survey was conducted to provide baseline information on Bluegill for the new 5-fish bag limit experimental fishing regulation that went into effect in 2021. The goal of this regulation on Marion Lake is to increase the size structure of Bluegill. Nine trap nets were set on May 17, 2021 and lifted on May 18, 2021 catching a total of 355 Bluegill. Bluegill ranged in size from 3.5 inches up to 7.3 inches in length, with an average size of 5.5 inches. Aging structures (otoliths) were collected from 68 Bluegill. The largest number of fish were from 2016 (5 years old). The oldest Bluegill sampled in 2021 was determined to be from the 2012 year-class (9 years old). The size structure of Bluegill found in Marion Lake is below average for for East Metro-area lakes, with only 3% of the fish 7 inches or larger.

A targeted survey of the nearshore fish community on Lake Marion was conducted the week of June 20th, 2017 by Fisheries Lake IBI program staff. Sampling stations were evenly spaced around the lake and each was sampled by backpack electrofishing and seining with a 50-foot seine, where possible. Backpack electrofishing was completed at all 14 stations with two sites sampled from the boat. Soft sediments with abundant emergent vegetation in deep water prevented the use of seines at four sampling sites. Nearshore sampling captured 8 native species of fish. Data from this targeted nearshore survey is combined with data from a standard gill and trap netting survey in July 2017 to calculate a Fish-based Index of Biologic Integrity (FIBI) score that describes the overall health of the lake. 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. 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. The FIBI score for Lake Marion based on this survey is above the impairment threshold for aquatic life use determined for similar lakes. Data from this survey will contribute biological information about the health of the fish community to the Mississippi River-Lake Pepin Watershed assessment process in coordination with MN Pollution Control Agency. For additional information on the FIBI, search for "lake index of biological integrity" on the mndnr.gov website.

Based on Minnesota DNR survey data, anglers target Largemouth Bass, Northern Pike, Walleye, Bluegill, and Green Sunfish in Marion. See the full species list above for catch rates, size structure, and quality scores.

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

Marion has a maximum depth of 21 feet, per Minnesota DNR data.

The most recent Minnesota DNR survey data for the main sport fish in Marion is from 2021.

Yes — Marion has confirmed Eurasian watermilfoil and zebra mussel. Clean, drain, and dry your equipment to avoid spreading invasives to other waters.