Detroit Lakes area fisheries

The Lake City fisheries work area

Detroit Lakes area staff stocking Lake Sturgeon fingerlings in Clay County's Buffalo River.

Anglers who fish in Becker, Clay, Mahnomen, Norman, Polk and Red Lake county areas benefit from the management, habitat and oversight work of the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources' Detroit Lakes area fisheries staff.

Area Fisheries Supervisor Nathan Olson and a staff of six full-time and three part-time employees manage 151 fishing lakes and more than 1,500 miles of rivers and streams. Those waters include popular fishing destinations such as nearby Detroit Lake, the Cormorant lakes area, White Earth and portions of the Red River.

Information

• Stocking - Check the LakeFinder
• Surveys - Check the LakeFinder

Our work

What we do

• Harvesting over 40,000,000 walleye eggs and producing 20 million walleye fry and up to 12,000 pounds of walleye fingerlings per year.
• Administering 121 Aquatic Management Area (AMA) parcels totaling over 1,500 acres of land, nearly 20 miles of shoreline, and over 8 miles of streams.
• Coordinating with the White Earth Indian Reservation, the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, South Dakota, North Dakota and the Province of Manitoba on Red River fisheries management issues.
• Evaluating experimental regulations on seven lakes and one river.
• Conducting and reporting about 25 lake/stream assessments per year.
• Compiling about 25 lake/stream management plans per year.
• Providing technical/advisory information to local, state and federal agencies on various development/resource activities.
• Attending and/or provide information for seven lake association and sportsman's club meetings per year.
• Maintain the Becker County fair fish display.
• Delivering about six MinnAqua and outreach programs to various groups per year, including a kids fishing pond.

Contacts

Detroit Lakes staff

Slide text left for phones & emails

Name	Position	Phone	Email
Nathan Olson	Area supervisor	218-846-8290	[email protected]
Mandy Erickson	Assistant area supervisor	218-846-8290	[email protected]
Mike Habrat	Fisheries specialist	218-846-8290	[email protected]
Erin Haws	Fisheries specialist	218-846-8290	[email protected]
Josh Wickstrom	Fisheries technician	218-846-8290	[email protected]
Nick Kludt	Red River fisheries specialist	218-846-8290	[email protected]
Krysta Lipton	Office administrative specialist	218-846-8290	[email protected]