Lake information report

Name: Ojibway (Twin)

Public Access Information

Lake Characteristics

Fish Sampled for the 2007 Survey Year

Length of Selected Species (Trapnet, Gillnet) Sampled for the 2007 Survey Year

Fish Stocking Activity

Fish Stocked by Species for the Last Ten Years

Fish Consumption Guidelines

These fish consumption guidelines help people make choices about which fish to eat and how often. Following the guidelin es enables people to reduce their exposure to contaminants while still enjoying the many benefits from fish.

Pregnant Women, Women who may become pregnant and Children under age 15

General Population

DOWID - MN DNR, Divion of Waters' lake ID number.

Contaminants listed were measured at levels that trigger advice to limit consumption.

Listing of consumption guidelines do not imply the fish are legal to keep, MN DNR fishing regulations should be consulted.

Dioxin
Mercury
PCBS - Polychlorinated biphenyls
PFOS - Perfluorooctane sulfanate

Status of the Fishery (as of 08/13/2007)

Ojibway Lake is in Ecological Lake Class 3, which consists of 72 lakes in northeast Minnesota that are very deep, have irregular shoreline shapes, and have very clear and soft (unmineralized) water. The trophic status of Ojibway Lake is between oligotrophic and mesotrophic.

Ojibway Lake was thermally stratified on 08/13/2007 with a surface temperature of 73 F and a bottom temperature of 40 F. In the west basin of the lake, adequate oxygen for trout (more than 5 ppm) was retained to a depth of 51 ft where the temperature was 42 F. Previous investigations have shown that in the central basin of the lake 5 ppm oxygen is retained to a depth of about 40 ft where the temperature is 40-45 F, and that in the eastern bay 5 ppm oxygen is retained only to a depth of 14 ft where the temperature is 55 F. Oxygen levels in cold water in 2001 were quite low in the west and central basins of Ojibway Lake, dropping below 5 ppm as shallow as 35 ft. The initial fisheries lake survey in 1950 considered Ojibway Lake to be a marginal lake trout lake based on its water quality.

The major inlet to Ojibway Lake, from Triangle Lake, has a short and steep watercourse with log jams and the remnants of a beaver dam at the head. The outlet, to Camp 20 Lake has a long, braided channel with a log jam at the head, the remnants of an old filter barrier downstream (built when Camp 20 Lake was being stocked with trout), and a cattail and grassy swamp area farther downstream. While these barriers may prevent upstream fish movement, they do not prevent downstream fish movement, as demonstrated by the movement of splake from Ojibway Lake to Camp 20 Lake after a 1991 stocking, and by the sudden appearance of walleye in Ojibway Lake in the 2005 investigation, presumably migrating from Triangle Lake. Lake bottom substrates along the shoreline of Ojibway Lake are mostly boulder, ledge rock, rubble, and silt. Aquatic plants in Ojibway Lake are sparse and grow to a depth of 12 ft; shoreline fringe plants are the most abundant, but northern milfoil, white waterlilies, and various pondweeds are also present.

There is a public access with a concrete boat ramp on Ojibway Lake at the site of the old Deer Trail Lodge on the north side of the lake. There were 49 private homes and cottages on the lake in 2005, up from 39 in 1981, 25 in 1969, and 5 in 1950. All of these homes and cottages are on the north and west sides of the lake and comprise about 30 percent of the shoreline; the remainder of the shoreline is U.S. Forest Service land. Many of the private homes and cottages were on Forest Service leased lots, but were recently privatized through a land exchange.

The purpose of the 2007 assessment was to evaluate the survival and growth of stocked lake trout yearlings by using 12 deep gillnets set in or below the thermocline at depths ranging from 25 ft to 85 ft and in water temperatures of 40-52 F. Fifteen previous investigations, dating back to 1950, each used 7-18 deep gillnets

Deep water fish populations in 2007 were dominated by moderate numbers of cisco and low numbers of lake trout. Burbot, another common coldwater fish species in the area, were observed in Ojibway Lake only in the 2005 investigation when one 22" specimen was captured.

Cisco numbers in 2007 (16.4/deep gillnet) were at the median value for all investigations on this lake. Cisco sizes in 2007 averaged 9.8", which was similar to sizes in previous catches on this lake. The largest cisco in 2007 was 13.5". Cisco are a rich forage fish and are responsible for the large size of some northern pike and lake trout in Ojibway Lake. Ojibway Lake is open for netting of bait-sized cisco under the ice each fall.

Lake trout numbers in Ojibway Lake have generally been low, but the 2007 lake trout catch of 0.3/deep gillnet was lower than the median catch of 0.7/deep gillnet in all investigations on this lake. Two of the four lake trout captured in 2007 were fin-clipped, indicating they had been stocked.

The two fin-clipped lake trout caught in 2007 were survivors of a paired stocking of Gillis Lake strain and Mountain Lake strain yearlings in May of 2004 at the average length of 7.0". Both were Gillis Lake strain trout with a right ventral clip. One had grown only to a length of 9.8" in the 39 months since being stocked. Although lake trout growth in Ojibway Lake has historically been slow, the growth of this individual was extremely slow. The stomach of this trout was empty. The other Gillis Lake strain trout was 14.6", and exhibited growth that was faster than normal for this lake, but was typical of four year old lake trout in area lakes.

No trout were caught from the 2006 yearling stocking (Gillis strain with adipose-right ventral clips and Mountain Lake strain with adipose-left ventral clips).

One unclipped lake trout was age 7, and at 16.2" was smaller than the median length of 18.0" for age 7 trout in area lakes. The other unclipped trout was age 9, and at 21.9" was smaller than the median length of 23.2" for age 9 trout in area lakes.

For more information on this lake, contact: Area Fisheries Supervisor 650 Hwy 169 Tower, MN 55790 Phone: (218) 753-2580 Internet: Tower Fisheries E-Mail: Tower.Fisheries@state.mn.us	Lake maps can be obtained from: Minnesota Bookstore 660 Olive Street St. Paul, MN 55155 (651) 297-3000 or (800) 657-3757 To order, use C5075 for the map-id.
For general DNR Information, contact: DNR Information Center 500 Lafayette Road St. Paul, MN 55155-4040 TDD: (651) 296-6157 or (888) MINNDNR Internet: www.dnr.state.mn.us E-Mail: info.dnr@state.mn.us	Turn in Poachers (TIP):     Toll-free: (800) 652-9093