Little Vanose Lake

How big is Little Vanose Lake?

How deep is Little Vanose Lake?

What kind of fish can you catch in Little Vanose Lake?

Are there places to eat and drink near Little Vanose Lake?

Little Vanose is a 144-acre, class 39 lake located in north central Mahnomen County. Maximum depth of this fertile lake is 28 feet and it is subject to occasional winterkill. Most recently, the lake experienced winterkills of unknown severity in 2013 and 2014. This lake is considered eutrophic with a mean Carlson's trophic state index in the fifties. In addition to frequent winterkills, there was a heavy summerkill during the summer of 1993 as a result of a heavy blue-green algal die-off after several consecutive days of hot, still weather. The north, west, and south shorelines are primarily state-owned, as part of the Vanose WMA. Historically, the fishery in Little Vanose has been dominated by Black Bullheads.

The fish caught during the 2017 survey were typical of a lake which experiences significant winterkills. Only one gill net was used during this survey due to the extreme number of Walleye caught. The Walleye catch rate was 132 fish per net. Only Black Bullhead and Largemouth Bass were the other species caught in gill nets. Hybrid Sunfish and Pumpkinseed Sunfish were also caught in trap nets. The Hybrid Sunfish capture is intriguing as it was only one large individual and there were no other sunfish species sampled to create a hybrid other than Pumpkinseed.

Despite suspected severe winterkills in 2013 and 2014, all of the caught Walleye were from the 2013 year-class. The winterkill in 2014 appears to not have been severe enough to kill off the large 2013 year-class of Walleye. The success of this year-class has likely suppressed the successive Walleye fry stockings. Interestingly, all of the Largemouth Bass were from the 2014 year-class. What is unknown is whether some brood fish remained through the 2013 winterkill or some non-permitted stocking occurred in 2014. Length frequencies of the Black Bullhead and Pumpkinseed Sunfish suggest only one year-class is also present of these.

The extended winter of 2017-2018 likely will result in some extent of winterkill in Little Vanose Lake. Assessments completed after the publication of this report will aid in determining the amount of winterkill and future management of the Lake.

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