Little Mantrap

Little Mantrap Lake is located thirteen miles north of Park Rapids on the border of Becker and Hubbard County. Little Mantrap has a surface area of 381 acres and a maximum depth of 54 feet. A DNR owned public access is located on the south shore of the lake. Little Mantrap provides angling opportunities for Largemouth Bass, panfish, Walleye and Northern Pike. The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has classified Minnesota's lakes into 43 different types based on physical, chemical, and other characteristics. Little Mantrap is in class 25. Class 25 lakes are generally deep, very clear, have hard water, and are irregularly shaped. Other class 25 lakes in the Park Rapids management include: Bad Axe, Belle Taine, Big Mantrap, Dead, Eagle, Island, Little Sand, Spider, Straight, Third Crow Wing, Two Inlets, and West Crooked. Largemouth Bass were sampled in good numbers again in 2022, with fish averaging 12.5 inches. The longest Largemouth Bass sampled was 17.8 inches in length. Currently, there is a special regulation for bass on Little Mantrap which states all fish from 12 - 20 inches must be immediately released, and one over 20 inches allowed in possession. Little Mantrap has an abundant sunfish population, including Bluegill, Pumpkinseed, Green Sunfish and their hybrids. Most fish sampled were too small for anglers, but there were some nicer fish ranging up to 8 inches in length. Little Mantrap supports a healthy Black Crappie population. Special spring sampling targeting Crappies took place in 2022, with most of the fish in the 9.5 - 11.5 inch range. Walleye abundance was better than recent years in Little Mantrap, with one trophy fish sampled at 30 inches in length. Walleyes averaged 17.8 inches in length and were spread out evenly from 13 to 20 inches. Yellow Perch, an important forage species, were sampled in very low numbers and all were under 7 inches in length. Northern Pike abundance was at the high end of recent surveys in Little Mantrap. Anglers will find most northern from 15 - 21 inches in length, a great opportunity to take advantage of the current Northern Pike regulation. Northern Pike sampled had an average length of 18.3 inches and weighed 1.3 pounds. Currently, no Aquatic Invasive Species (AIS) have been identified in Little Mantrap Lake. To avoid spreading AIS, lake users are required to remove all aquatic plants or animals from their watercraft and drain all water from their boat before leaving the access.

Little Mantrap is located on the Hubbard and Becker County lines, sixteen miles north or Park Rapids. Little Mantrap has a surface area of 381 acres and a maximum depth of 54 feet. The lake is irregular shaped with two main basins and several smaller bays. A county-owned public access with an earthen ramp is located on the southern bay. Little Mantrap is a popular lake for Largemouth Bass, Panfish, and Northern Pike fishing, but also supports a bonus Walleye population. The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has classified Minnesota's lakes into 43 different types based on physical, chemical, and other characteristics. Little Mantrap is in lake class 25. Class 25 lakes are generally deep, clear, hard water lakes, with irregular shaped shoreline. Other class 25 lakes in the Park Rapids management area include: Bad Axe, Belle Taine, Eagle, West Crooked, Third Crow Wing, Island, Big Mantrap, Ojbway, and Two Inlets. Anglers should be aware that a special regulation for Largemouth Bass is in place on Little Mantrap that requires the release of all Bass between 12 to 20 inches in length with only one Bass over 20 inches in possession. Little Mantrap has an excellent Largemouth Bass population, made up of both numbers and sizes of Bass. Spring electrofishing sampling found good numbers of Largemouth Bass within the protected slot (12-20 inches). Good water quality, aquatic vegetation cover, and spawning substrate provide excellent habitat for Largemouth Bass in Little Mantrap. Panfish and Northern Pike are also popular species on Little Mantrap. The Bluegill and Pumpkinseed population in Little Mantrap are probably known more for numbers than size, however there are enough fish in the 6-8 inch size range to provide good fishing. Past and present surveys have shown the Black Crappie population in Little Mantrap to fluctuate from low to moderate numbers. Anglers can expect to find Black Crappie in the 9-11 inch size range. Anglers will find an abundant Northern Pike population, dominated by small Pike in the 19-21 inch size range. Sampled Northern Pike had an average length and weight of 18.8 inches and 1.4 pounds, with Pike measured up to 30.0 inches. Though not know as a Walleye lake, Little Mantrap does support a low to moderate Walleye population. Walleye abundance was down slightly from past years with sampled Walleye ranging in length from 15.7 to 24.2 inches. Other species sampled included an abundant Yellow Bullhead population and low numbers of Black Bullhead, Brown Bullhead, Rock Bass, and Hybrid Sunfish. Currently no aquatic invasive species (AIS) have been identified in Little Mantrap. To avoid spreading AIS, lake users are required to remove all aquatic plants or animals from their watercraft and drain all water from their boat before leaving the lake.

Little Mantrap Lake (29-0313-00) is a 380.95-acre lake with a maximum depth of 54 feet located fourteen miles north of Park Rapids, MN. A survey targeting near shore fish species was conducted by Park Rapids Fisheries Staff on July 13, 2017 to assess populations of non-game and small sport fish. Ten 100-foot sampling sites were evenly spaced around the lake shore, sampling a variety of habitat types. Each site was sampled by backpack electrofishing and seining with a 50-foot or 15-foot 1/8th-inch mesh seine, depending on habitat conditions. During this assessment, two sites were sampled with a 50-foot seine and five were sampled with a 15-foot seine. Site conditions prevented the use of seines at three sites. Backpack electrofishing was done at all ten sites, several of which were conducted from the side of the boat. Nearshore sampling captured several species of fish including three species intolerant of disturbance; Banded Killifish, Blackchin Shiner, and Blacknose Shiner. Other species sampled during the nearshore effort included Bluegill, Bluntnose Minnow, Central Mudminnow, Green Sunfish, Hybrid Sunfish, Iowa Darter, Johnny Darter, Largemouth Bass, Pumpkinseed, Yellow Bullhead, and Yellow Perch. Nearshore catches will be used along with gillnet and trapnet catch data from a standard fisheries survey on August 7, 2017, to calculate a fish-based Index of Biotic Integrity (IBI) score which is indicative of the health of Little Mantrap Lake. This survey is contributing to a watershed assessment process in coordination with MN Pollution Control Agency. Little Mantrap Lake is located in the Crow Wing River Watershed.

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

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

Little Mantrap has a maximum depth of 54 feet and a mean depth of 14 feet, per Minnesota DNR data.

The most recent Minnesota DNR survey data for the main sport fish in Little Mantrap is from 2022.

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