Heilberger Lake

How big is Heilberger Lake?

How deep is Heilberger Lake?

What kind of fish can you catch in Heilberger Lake?

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Are there boat launches on Heilberger Lake?

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Heilberger Lake is a 224-acre mesotrophic (moderately fertile) lake located in west-central Otter Tail County approximately ten miles southeast of Erhard, MN. Heilberger Lake is part of the Otter Tail River Watershed. Heilberger Lake is connected to Little Heilberger Lake via an unnavigable culvert along the south shoreline. The immediate watershed is composed primarily of agricultural land interspersed with hardwood woodlots. The maximum depth is 47 feet; however, 43% of the lake is less than 15 feet in depth. The secchi disk reading during the 2014 lake survey was 12.5 feet. Previous secchi disk readings have ranged from 10.0 to 15.0 feet.
The shoreline of Heilberger Lake has been extensively developed with homes and cottages. A DNR owned concrete public water access is located off of County Highway 22 along the south shoreline of the lake. The shoal water substrates consist primarily of sand and gravel. Hardstem bulrush and common cattail stands are scattered around the entire lake but are most prevalent in the west bay. Emergent aquatic plants such as hardstem bulrush and cattail provide valuable fish and wildlife habitat, and are critical for maintaining good water quality. Emergent plants provide spawning areas for fish such as Northern Pike, Largemouth Bass, and panfish. They also serve as an important nursery area for all species of fish. Because of their ecological value, emergent plants may not be removed without a DNR permit.
Heilberger Lake can be ecologically classified as a bass-panfish type of lake and this is reflected in the assemblage of the fish community. Largemouth Bass, Northern Pike, Black Crappie, and Bluegill are the dominant fish species in Heilberger Lake. The prolificacy of these species can be attributed to the abundance of suitable spawning habitat that is available for these species.
A high-density Northern Pike population exists. Northern Pike exhibit consistently good reproduction. Pike ranged in length from 13.3 to 26.4 inches with an average length and weight of 20.1 inches and 1.7 pounds. Northern Pike growth is slow with an average length of 19.4 inches at four years of age. Poor growth rates may be attributed to an extremely low abundance of Yellow Perch, the preferred forage of Northern Pike.
Data from a spring trapnetting assessment indicate that the Black Crappie population is very abundant. Age data indicate that Black Crappie reproduction is consistently good. Fifty-two percent of the crappies were 10.0 inches or greater in length. Crappies attain an average length of 10.0 inches at five years of age.
Bluegills are also very abundant. Age data indicate that Bluegill reproduction is inconsistent. Thirty-six percent of the Bluegills were 7.0 inches or greater in length. Bluegills attain an average length of 7.2 inches at six years of age.
Anglers can maintain the quality of fishing by practicing selective harvest. Selective harvest encourages the release of medium to large-size fish while allowing the harvest of the more abundant smaller fish for table fare. Releasing the medium to large fish will ensure that the lake will have enough spawning age fish on an annual basis and will provide anglers with more opportunities to catch large fish in the future.

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