Greenleaf Lake

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Greenleaf Lake

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Greenleaf Lake is a 302-acre lake located approximately 3.5 miles southwest of the town of Montgomery in Le Sueur County. The DNR-owned public access is located on the northeast shore off County Road 140. Greenleaf Lake has a maximum depth of 19 feet, with approximately 87% of the lake less than 15 feet deep. Greenleaf Lake is primarily managed for Bluegill and Walleye and secondarily for Black Crappie and Largemouth Bass. The management plan calls for stocking Walleye fry at a rate of 1,000 fish/littoral acre in odd years. Recent stocking events include fry in 2019 and 2021. Periodic winterkills were common before the installation of an aerator in 1983. Since that time, winterkills had not been a factor until 2019 when a near complete winterkill took place. High levels of phosphorus have contributed to poor water quality and extensive algae blooms that result in poor water quality. The lack of aquatic vegetation remains a challenge for managing stable game fish populations.

Greenleaf Lake was surveyed the week of 28 June 2021 as part of a regular monitoring program conducted by the Minnesota DNR. This survey was intended to assess the fish community by deploying 5 gill nets and 9 trap nets, as well as recording water quality parameters.

A total of 135 Bluegills were sampled with trap nets for a catch rate of 15.0/net. Since 1984, catch rates have varied from 3.3/net to 142.0/net with an average of 31.4/net. Bluegills ranged from 3.3 to 8.3 inches with an average of 4.7 inches. Bluegills were aged using scales and otoliths and ranged from 1 to 7 years old with 5 year-classes present. The 1 year old age-group accounted for approximately 67% of the sample. Bluegill sampled were likely the result of fish stocked in 2021.

A total of 25 Walleyes were sampled with gill nets for a catch rate of 5.0/net. Trap net catches of Walleye were very high at 26.1/net. Walleyes were believed to be eating the young of the year Black Bullheads in shallow water which caused the high trap net numbers. Walleyes ranged from 7.8 to 14.5 inches. All Walleye sampled were from the 2019 fry stocking.

Yellow Perch were the most common non-bullhead species sampled with gill nets in 2021. A total of 382 Yellow Perch ranging from 5.5 to 9.8 inches were sampled for a catch rate of 96.4/net. Broodstock Yellow Perch were stocked in 2019. It appears that Yellow Perch have had successful spawns in 2019 and 2020 as there are high numbers of fish in these year classes. These large year classes should provide food as the 2019 year class of Walleyes continues to grow.

Black Bullheads dominated the gill and trap net catches in 2016. A total of 1,619 were sampled with gill nets for a catch rate of 269.8/net. Since 1984, catch rates have varied from 8.0/net in 1994 to 274.0/net in 1985 with an average of 103.1/net. Lengths ranged from 4.5 to 14.4 inches with an average of 7.2 inches. Black Bullheads thrive in unstable and hypereutrophic systems like Greenleaf Lake. Even with the aerator, the fish community will likely remain dominated by tolerant species such as Black Bullheads and Common Carp.

Common Carp were the second most abundant species in the gill nets. A total of 31 fish ranging from 7.5 to 26.5 inches were sampled for a catch rate of 5.2/net. Since 1984, catch rates have varied from 0.0/net in 1985 to 48.3/net in 2006 with an average of 13.0/net. Like Black Bullheads, Common Carp are adept at surviving in lakes like Greenleaf Lake. To demonstrate this point, approximately 80% of the total weight of fish sampled with gill nets was Black Bullheads and Common Carp. Unfortunately, efforts to reduce populations of Common Carp and Black Bullhead have largely been unsuccessful in lakes similar to Greenleaf Lake. It is also possible that aeration allows them to remain at high numbers when they would otherwise suffer high losses during winterkills.

The only other species sampled in 2016 was White Sucker.

Anglers can play an important role in maintaining or improving a fish population by practicing selective harvest. Selective harvest allows for the harvest of smaller fish for consumption, while encouraging the release of medium to large fish that may contribute to natural recruitment. This practice helps maintain balance in the fish community and provides anglers the opportunity to catch more and larger fish in the future. Additionally, smaller fish often taste better and have fewer contaminants than larger, older fish from the same water body.

Shoreline property owners also play an important role in the overall health of an aquatic ecosystem, including the fish population. Natural shorelines, including vegetation, woody debris, and bottom substrates, provide valuable habitat for fish and wildlife, help maintain water quality, and reduce bank erosion. By leaving natural shorelines unaltered or restoring them to natural conditions, shoreline property owners are doing their part to maintain or improve a healthy ecosystem in the lake and protect the resource for future generations.

-Tyler Fellows, fisheries specialist

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