Clam

Clam Lake is a 74 acre lake located near Trimont, Minnesota in Martin County. The lake has a shoreline length of 1.49 miles and a maximum depth of 8.0 feet. Curly leaf pondweed can be abundant from June to July. Curly Leaf Pondweed was first documented on Clam Lake during a 1991 survey. Clam Lake is managed primarily for Yellow Perch, and secondarily for Northern Pike and Black Crappie. Clam Lake has a history of low dissolved oxygen in winter months and can have minor winterkill events as a result. The last winterkill event was during the winter of 2020 -2021, however it was not detected until this survey. A fish survey was conducted the week of August 21, 2023 with 1 gill net and 8 trap nets to monitor the fish community in Clam Lake. There were no Yellow Perch captured in the 2023 standard survey, suggesting that they were either eliminated or severely reduced in abundance from Clam Lake during the 2020-2021 winterkill. The previous survey done in 2017 had a Yellow Perch catch rate of 94.0 per gill net. Pre-spawn Yellow Perch will be stocked in the spring of 2024 to restart the Perch population in Clam Lake. Those fish will likely spawn in the lake and will take a few years of growth to see a substantial Yellow Perch fishery. Like Yellow Perch, Black Crappie appear to have been eliminated or significantly reduced in abundance by a winterkill during the winter of 2020-2021. No Black Crappie were captured in the 2023 standard survey, while in 2017, Black Crappie were sampled at a rate of 10.1 per trap net. Pre-spawn Black Crappie will be stocked in the spring of 2024 to restart the Crappie population in Clam Lake. The 2023 Northern Pike catch rate was 2.4 per trap net, higher than the long-term average of 0.7 per trap net. These Pike were likely from the fingerlings that were stocked in the fall of 2021. Northern Pike lengths ranged from 18.2 to 24.5 inches and averaged 20.5 inches. Northern Pike are able to tolerate low dissolved oxygen levels better than other species such as Crappie and Perch. Clam Lake is within the "southern zone" of the Northern Pike zone regulations, so two Pike longer than 24 inches can be harvested. The best indicator that Clam Lake likely experienced a winterkill was the high abundance of small Black Bullhead. In 2023, Black Bullhead were captured at a rate of 390 per trap net, greatly exceeding the expected range of catch rates for similar lakes (11.5 to 132.6 per trap net). Black Bullhead lengths were small, ranging from 4.9 to 6.0 inches and averaging 5.5 inches. The small range of sizes indicates one year class of Black Bullhead present in Clam Lake, likely produced the spring after the winterkill. Other species sampled included Common Carp (3.0 per gill net), Bigmouth Buffalo (0.6 per trap net), and Yellow Bullhead (0.4 per trap net).

Clam Lake is a 74 acre lake located near Trimont, Minnesota in Martin County. The lake has a simple round shoreline and a maximum depth of 8.0 feet. Curly leaf pondweed can be an issue as an invasive submerged plant that has complete coverage on the lake from time to time mainly in June and July. Clam Lake is managed for Yellow Perch, Black Crappie, and Northern Pike. Clam Lake has a history of minor winterkill events. The last winterkill was a very minor kill in 2010 and resulted in the restocking of Yellow Perch. A fish survey was conducted from August 21 to August 23, 2017 with 1 gill net and 7 trap nets to evaluate the fish community. YELLOW PERCH One hundred and three Yellow Perch were captured in the gill net and trap net samples. The gill net catch was 94 fish in 1 net and the trap net catch rate was 1.3 per net (7 nets). The gill net catch rate satisfied the management goal but was slightly below the long-term average of 105.6 per gill net. The trap net catch was the lowest observed since sampling began, but trap nets are not indicative of Yellow Perch abundance, gill nets are a better indicator. While the gill net catch rate is good and the management objective has been met, the population is dominated by small fish. Yellow Perch ranged in length from just over 5 inches to just shy of 10 inches with an average length of 6 inches in the gill nets. With that said, 77% of the Yellow Perch were 5.5 to 6.5 inches. Clam Lake has the potential to be a very good perch fishery with continued growth of the fish. BLACK CRAPPIE Seventy three Black Crappie were captured in one gillnet and seven trap nets. Gill nets are not good indicators of Black Crappie abundance or size structure. Trap nets are good indicators of Black Crappie abundance and size structure. The trap net catch rate of 10.1 per trap net was within the normal range for similar lakes and was the highest catch rate ever observed. The size of Black Crappie was good with fish ranging in length from just over 6 inches to just under 12 inches with a mean length of 10 inches. Nearly half (46%) of the Black Crappie in the trap nets were over 11 inches. In addition, the Black Crappie were in excellent condition. The Black Crappie population has the potential to be a fantastic angling opportunity if the bite turns on. NORTHERN PIKE Only 1 Northern Pike was caught in the trap net sample. The single fish caught was 34 inches showing some large fish are present in the lake. However, a single fish can't tell us much about abundance of the population. Northern Pike adults will be stocked in 2018 to boost the Northern Pike abundance. OTHER SPECIES Other species sampled were Bigmouth Buffalo, Black Bullhead, Common Carp, Freshwater Drum, White Sucker, and Yellow Bullhead. Black Bullhead, Freshwater Drum, White Sucker, and Yellow Bullhead trap net catch rates were all within their expected catch ranges. Historically, the 2017 survey is the first time Freshwater Drum have been sampled in Clam Lake. The Common Carp trap net catch rate was less than expected and the Bigmouth Buffalo trap net catch rate was greater than expected. Overall, Black Bullhead and Bigmouth Buffalo appear to be major components of the Clam Lake fish community with Black Bullhead making up 55% of the trap net catch by weight and Bigmouth Buffalo making up 13% of the trap net catch by weight. For Bullhead anglers, Clam Lake could offer a great opportunity.

Clam Lake is a 74 acre lake located near Trimont, Minnesota in Martin County. The lake has a shoreline length of 1.0 miles and a maximum depth of 8.0 feet. The entire lake has submerged vegetation growing to the surface which may have influenced gillnet catch rates. There is presently no public access on Clam Lake, however the Trails and Waterways Unit is in the process of purchasing property on Clam in order to develop a public access.The yellow perch catch rate of 38.0 was high compared to lakes similar to Clam. The yellow perch catch rate was 185.0 in 1991. Lengths of yellow perch ranged from 5.7 to 11.3 inches and averaged 7.3 inches. The yellow perch population appeared to be in poor condition which may be due to competition for food with orangespotted sunfish.The northern pike catch rate of 2.0 was typical for lakes similar to Clam. The northern pike catch rate was 0.0 in 1991. Lengths of northern pike ranged from 20.5 to 24.1 inches and averaged 22.3 inches.The black crappie catch rate of 0.1 was low compared to lakes similar to Clam. The black crappie catch rate was 0.2 in 1991 and 491.4 in 1986. The only black crappie sample during the survey was 8.1 inches and weighed 0.3 pounds.The black bullhead catch rate of 45.1 was typical for lakes similar to Clam. The black bullhead catch rate was 88.0 in 1991 and 0.0 in 1986. Lengths of black bullhead ranged from 4.4 to 11.4 inches and averaged 7.1 inches.Other fish species sample during the survey included bigmouth buffalo, golden shiners, green sunfish, hybrid sunfish, orangespotted sunfish, white crappie, and white suckers.To promote and maintain a healthy fish population, pollution and other inputs need to be controlled. Fish habitat is directly affected by water quality. Nutrient, sediment and other waste inputs can drastically alter the chemical and physical components of a lake. It is paramount to maintain if not improve the current water quality of Clam Lake through watershed management to preserve this fishery for future generations to enjoy.

Based on Minnesota DNR survey data, anglers target Black Crappie, White Crappie, Yellow Perch, Hybrid Sunfish, and Green Sunfish in Clam. See the full species list above for catch rates, size structure, and quality scores.

We don't have a confirmed public access point on record for Clam. Check the DNR LakeFinder page for current access details before you go.

Clam has a maximum depth of 8 feet, per Minnesota DNR data.

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

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