Kansas Lake

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What kind of fish can you catch in Kansas Lake?

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Are there boat launches on Kansas Lake?

Are there places to eat and drink near Kansas Lake?

Kansas Lake is a 398-acre, class 43 lake, located in Watonwan County, approximately 5 miles southwest of the City of St. James. Kansas Lake has a mean depth of 5.0 ft. and a maximum depth of 7.0 ft. Kansas Lake is managed primarily for Walleye, and secondarily for Northern Pike, Yellow Perch, and Black Crappie.

Historically, Kansas Lake has been prone to winterkill. The most recent winterkill occurred during the winter of 2007-2008, but was only a partial kill. Winter of 2022-2023 was harsh and greater than 20 lakes in southern Minnesota lakes experienced some verified level of winterkill. Kansas Lake did not have any obvious signs of winterkill as no dead fish were found after ice-off and we had angler reports of catching Walleye until the end of February on the lake. Additionally, during winter 2022-2023 Kansas Lake never had dissolved oxygen levels observed less than the 2.0 ppm threshold where we see stress in fish. However, anglers were having difficulties catching Walleye on or after May fishing opener during the spring of 2023. Therefore, a quick daytime electrofishing assessment was conducted June 9, 2023 to see what species were present.

Nine species were sampled in daytime electrofishing. Those species were Bigmouth Buffalo, Black Bullhead, Common Carp, Fathead Minnow, Freshwater Drum, Northern Pike, Walleye, White Sucker, and Yellow Perch. Adults of all species of fish but Walleye were observed during sampling. Walleye caught (N=57) only ranged in length from 6.6 to 8.4 inches. While it was a bit concerning to only see age-1 Walleye, it did not mean that adults were not present. Daytime sampling, especially in clear water, typically results in few adult Walleyes observed near shore. Additionally, the presence of adult Freshwater Drum which are very susceptible to low dissolved oxygen and will die during harsh winters were found alive. Evidence suggested that adult Walleye were present, even when they were not caught in daytime electrofishing. Later summer and fall reports of Walleye being caught by anglers further indicated their presence. Finally, a naturally reproduced year class of Walleye was observed during ice-angling by one of the DNR fisheries staff in Windom added further evidence of adult Walleye in Kansas Lake. Curiously, it was not determined why such few adult Walleye, if any, were caught during May and early June of 2023. Additional sampling will be conducted to determine the relative abundance of fish in Kansas Lake.

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