Pelican Lake Information

Pelican Lake (Wright County) Map and Sampling

Due to an increased interest in information about Pelican Lake in Wright County, we have developed a more recent map of the Lake. The lake map was developed in 2007 based on work conducted by DNR Wildlife in 1999 and while not totally encompassing all of the contours, it represents a better map than what is currently available (Pelican Lake Depth Map ).

Keep in mind that Pelican Lake is managed by DNR Wildlife and there is no intention of managing it for fish; however state inland fishing regulations remain in effect. A copy of the restoration plan can be found at Pelican Lake Enhancement Project Overview . However, if you have more questions or concerns about the Pelican Lake Restoration Project please contact Fred Bengston Area Wildlife Manager at 320-223-7869.

The mild winters over the past 10 - 15 years have allowed for several species of fish to survive and grow relatively fast and fishing was excellent from 2008 - 2013. During the winter of 2013-14, Pelican Lake experienced a severe winterkill and the lake was opened to liberalized fishing from Feb. 28 - March 14, 2014 only.  Currently, state inland fishing regulations apply.

In 2008 and 2009, the DNR FiN Program (Fishing in the Neighborhood) had removed black crappie (BLC), bluegill (BLG), and largemouth bass (LMB), which were stocked into lakes within the Twin Cities metropolitan area to help create fishing opportunities for residents and visitors of the Twin Cities metropolitan area. For more information on the FiN program click on the following link DNR FiN Program. The commercial fisherman has only been removing black bullheads (BLB) since 1981.

 

 

Fish removed from Pelican Lake (Wright County) by DNR and Commercial Fishermen

2017

 

Year

Species

Number (N)

Pounds (lb)

Avg. Wt (lb)

N/acre)

2008

Black Crappie

4,031

939

0.23

1.0

2009

 

912

302

0.33

0.23

Total

 

4,943

1,241

0.25

1.23

 

 

 

 

 

 

2008

Bluegill

1,170

321

0.27

0.29

2009

 

567

227

0.40

0.14

Total

 

1,737

548

0.32

0.43

 

 

 

 

 

 

2008

Largemouth Bass

64

165

2.6

0.02

2009

 

35

76

2.2

0.01

Total

 

99

241

2.43

0.02

 

 

 

 

 

 

2008

Black Bullhead

 

3,500

 

 

2009

 

 

44,900

 

 

2010

 

 

8,100

 

 

2011

 

 

11,500

 

 

2012

 

 

9,500

 

 

2013

 

 

7,000

 

 

2014

 

 

---

 

 

2015

 

 

800

 

 

2016

 

 

---

 

 

2017

 

 

---

 

 

Total

 

 

85,300

 

 

Table 1. Fish removal from Pelican Lake since 2008. Black Crappie, Bluegill, and Largemouth Bass were removed by Metro FiN programs.  Black Bullheads were removed by commercial fisherman.

* The MN DNR has not removed any game fish from Pelican Lake since 2009 and has no further plans to remove any game fish in the future.

Updated Feb 16, 2018

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