Dead Coon (Main Lake)

Dead Coon Lake is a 547-acre, class 43 lake that is located southeast of the Town of Arco in Lincoln County. The lake has a maximum depth of 8.0 ft. and is situated in highly agricultural watershed, resulting in excess siltation and high nutrient levels. Additionally, Dead Coon Lake is positioned towards the bottom of the watershed of Lake Benton and has a watershed to lake ratio of at least 30:1. This has resulted in Dead Coon Lake having poor water quality for much of the year. Dead Coon Lake is managed primarily for Walleye and secondarily for Yellow Perch. A daytime electrofishing event was conducted on September 11, 2025 to determine if natural reproduction occurred in 2025. Young-of-the-year Walleye were sampled at a rate of 24.0 per hour of electrofishing. Analysis of fall electrofishing data by DNR staff indicated that a catch rate greater than 5 per hour can result in a successful year class and greater than 25 per hour often produces a year class. Therefore, potential exists for Dead Coon Lake. The fish appeared healthy and ranged in length from 5.2 to 7.7 inches with an average length of 6.4 inches. Fin clips from those Age 0 Walleye were sent in for genetic analysis. Of those fin clips that were sent in 54% of the genetics were from Lower Mississippi River and 20% were from Spicer Strain genetics. There is some small percentage of assignment error associated with those percentages along with remaining other northern Minnesota genetic strains present. Walleye fry will be stocked in the spring of 2026 to supplement the existing Walleye population.

Dead Coon Lake is a 547-acre lake that is located southeast of the Town of Arco in Lincoln County. The lake has a maximum depth of 8.0 ft. and is situated in highly agricultural watershed, resulting in excess siltation and high nutrient levels. Additionally, Dead Coon Lake is positioned towards the bottom of the watershed of Lake Benton and has a watershed to lake ratio of at least 30:1. This has resulted in Dead Coon Lake having poor water quality for much of the year. Dead Coon Lake is managed primarily for Walleye and secondarily for Yellow Perch. A standard survey was conducted during the week of July 21, 2025, to monitor fish populations using gill nets and trap nets. Walleye catch rates at Dead Coon Lake have varied from 2.7 per gill net in 2013 to 37.0 per gill net in 2005 and have averaged 20.5 per gill net since 1983. In 2025, the Walleye catch rate was 12.3 per gill net, which is within the expected range of catch rates for similar lakes (2.3 to 18.1 per gill net). Six year-classes of Walleye were sampled including age-1, 2, 3, 4, 6, and 8. The 2019 (age-6) and 2023 (age-2) year-classes do not correspond to stocking events in Dead Coon Lake or the upstream Lake Benton, indicating that natural reproduction occurred in one or both of these lakes. The 2023-year class (age-2) appears to be a strong year class as it accounted for 37 percent of sampled Walleye. In surveys of other lakes in the Windom area, this is a common strong year class which is likely a sign of good conditions that spring for natural reproduction and/or stocking of fry. Growth of Walleye was normal in Dead Coon Lake when compared to other populations, as mean length at age-3 was 14.6 inches. Walleye lengths ranged from 7.6 to 28.1 inches and averaged 13.7 inches. The management goal was not met because the catch rate did not exceed 15.0 per gill net. Catch rates of Yellow Perch have varied from 3.0 per gill net in 2005 to 33.0 per gill net in 1983 and have averaged 13.5 per gill net since 1983. In 2025, the catch rate of Yellow Perch was 22.3 per gill net, an increase from the 2021 catch rate of 7.7 per gill net and within the expected range of catch rates for similar lakes (2.7 to 25.0 per gill net). Lengths of Yellow Perch ranged from 5.9 to 11.8 inches and averaged 9.9 inches. The management goal was met because the catch rate was within the interquartile range. Northern Pike were captured at a rate of 0.7 per gill net and 0.6 per trap net. Lengths of Northern Pike ranged from 17.1 to 26.6 inches and averaged 24.3 inches. Other species sampled included Black Bullhead, Black Crappie, Common Carp, and White Sucker.

Dead Coon Lake is a 547-acre, class 43 lake that is located southeast of the Town of Arco in Lincoln County. The lake has a maximum depth of 8.0 ft. and is situated in highly agricultural watershed, resulting in excess siltation and high nutrient levels. Additionally, Dead Coon Lake is positioned towards the bottom of the watershed of Lake Benton and has a watershed to lake ratio of at least 30:1. This has resulted in Dead Coon Lake having poor water quality for much of the year. Dead Coon Lake is managed primarily for Walleye and secondarily for Yellow Perch. A daytime electrofishing event was conducted on October 9th, 2023 to collect fin clips from 50 age-0 Walleye. Three minutes of electrofishing during the middle of the day was utilized to collect 53 age-0 Walleye. Fin clips from the caudal fin were collected from all Age-0 Walleye and retained in a common jar of 95% ethanol for genetic analysis. Genetic analysis revealed that the fish were a mixture of Lower Mississippi Strain and Spicer Strain Walleye, matching what is found in Lake Benton and indicating a potential common population. Additionally, this naturally produced (non-stocked) year class was very abundant. If the catch rate of 53 fish in 3 minutes was extrapolated to 1 hour, then over 1,000 fish would have been sampled. The fish appeared healthy and ranged in length from 5.9 to 7.0 inches with an average length of 6.4 inches. A standard lake survey in 2025 will help to quantify the true strength of the year class, whether they contribute to the fishery as harvestable size (over 13 inches) adults in the gill net sample.

Based on Minnesota DNR survey data, anglers target Yellow Perch, Northern Pike, Walleye, Green Sunfish, and Largemouth Bass in Dead Coon (Main Lake). See the full species list above for catch rates, size structure, and quality scores.

Minnesota DNR records list public access for Dead Coon (Main Lake). Check the DNR LakeFinder page for the launch type and directions before you go.

Dead Coon (Main Lake) has a maximum depth of 9 feet, per Minnesota DNR data.

The most recent Minnesota DNR survey data for the main sport fish in Dead Coon (Main Lake) is from 2025.

No invasive species are on record for Dead Coon (Main Lake) in Minnesota DNR data. Always clean, drain, and dry your equipment to help keep it that way.