Michigan Lake Depths

Panfish · sunfish family

Rock bass

Ambloplites rupestris · also called goggle-eye

Recorded in 304 Michigan lakes and bays
Illustration of a rock bass in side view
AI-generated illustration, not a photograph and not to scale.
Spot it by
Red eyes and six spines on the anal fin
Matures
At 2–3 years
Spawns
April to early June, in water around 54–59°F
Eats
Small fish, insects and crayfish
Michigan record
3 lb 10 oz, 20 in — Holloway Reservoir, Genesee County, 1965

Where rock bass have been recorded

304 of the 1,288 Michigan lakes on this site with fish records list rock bass, across 68 counties, including 7 Great Lakes bays. Tap a dot to open that lake’s depth map.

Saginaw Bay, Bay CountyLake St. Clair, St. Clair CountyGrand Traverse Bay, Grand Traverse CountyBig Bay de Noc, Delta CountyLittle Bay de Noc, Delta CountyWildfowl Bay, Huron CountyHoughton Lake, Roscommon CountyTorch Lake, Antrim CountyBurt Lake, Cheboygan CountyLake Charlevoix, Charlevoix CountyMullett Lake, Cheboygan CountyLake Gogebic, Ontonagon CountyManistique Lake, Mackinac CountyBlack Lake, Cheboygan CountyHiggins Lake, Roscommon CountyCrystal Lake, Benzie CountyFletcher Pond, Alpena CountyHubbard Lake, Alcona CountyIndian Lake, Schoolcraft CountyTawas Bay, Iosco CountyElk Lake, Antrim CountyGrand Lake, Presque Isle CountyLake Leelanau, Leelanau CountyGlen Lake, Leelanau CountyHamlin Lake, Mason CountyWalloon Lake, Charlevoix CountyLac Vieux Desert, Gogebic CountyLake Michigamme, Marquette CountyBrevoort Lake, Mackinac CountyMuskegon Lake, Muskegon CountySouth Manistique Lake, Mackinac CountyDouglas Lake, Cheboygan CountyLong Lake, Grand Traverse CountyLake Skegemog, Kalkaska CountyGun Lake, Barry CountyPlatte Lake, Benzie CountyLake Mitchell, Wexford CountyCrooked Lake, Emmet CountyDuck Lake, Grand Traverse CountyPortage Lake, Manistee CountyMartiny Lake, Mecosta CountyGull Lake, Kalamazoo CountyGreen Lake, Grand Traverse CountyOtsego Lake, Otsego CountyMilakokia Lake, Mackinac CountyBear Lake, Manistee CountyLake Independence, Marquette CountyLake Paradise, Emmet CountyLake Bellaire, Antrim CountyNorth Manistique Lake, Luce CountyHodenpyl Dam Pond, Wexford CountyIntermediate Lake, Antrim CountyColdwater Lake, Branch CountyVan Etten Lake, Iosco CountyLake Gratiot, Keweenaw CountyDevils Lake, Lenawee CountyBelleville Lake, Wayne CountyWest Twin Lake, Montmorency CountyCass Lake, Oakland CountySanford Lake, Midland CountyLake Cadillac, Wexford CountyWixom Lake, Gladwin CountyLac La Belle, Keweenaw CountyCedar Lake, Alcona CountyDiamond Lake, Cass CountyMillecoquins Lake, Mackinac CountyPickerel Lake, Emmet CountyThousand Island Lake, Gogebic CountyMcDonald Lake, Schoolcraft CountyKent Lake, Oakland CountyEast Lake, Mackinac CountyLake Fenton, Genesee CountyLittle Platte Lake, Benzie CountySage Lake, Ogemaw CountyOrchard Lake, Oakland CountyAu Train Lake, Alger CountyGulliver Lake, Schoolcraft CountyEast Twin Lake, Montmorency CountyKlinger Lake, St. Joseph CountyChippewa Lake, Mecosta CountyFremont Lake, Newaygo CountyCrystal Lake, Montcalm CountySilver Lake, Oceana CountyPontiac Lake, Oakland CountyWalled Lake, Oakland CountyWhite Lake, Oakland CountyTrout Lake, Chippewa CountyGrand Sable Lake, Alger CountyLime Lake, Leelanau CountyCrooked Lake, Gogebic CountyHagerman Lake, Iron CountyFife Lake, Grand Traverse CountyLobdell Lake, Genesee CountyCisco Lake, Gogebic CountyWhitmore Lake, Livingston CountyUpper Herring Lake, Benzie CountyStony Creek Lake, Macomb CountyLake Thumb, Charlevoix CountyCrooked Lake, Missaukee CountyUnion Lake, Branch CountyDuck Lake, Calhoun CountyLake Orion, Oakland CountyWhitefish Lake, Montcalm CountyLong Lake, Iosco CountyLake Ann, Benzie CountyMunro Lake, Cheboygan CountyRound Lake, Delta CountyLake Geneserath, Charlevoix CountyUnion Lake, Oakland CountyPalmer Lake, St. Joseph CountyHorsehead Lake, Mecosta CountyLangford Lake, Gogebic CountyLower Herring Lake, Benzie CountyMaceday Lake, Oakland CountyLakeville Lake, Oakland CountyBeaufort Lake, Baraga CountyLincoln Lake, Kent CountyNawakwa Lake, Alger CountyNepessing Lake, Lapeer CountyEight Point Lake, Clare CountyLoon Lake, Iosco CountyWabasis Lake, Kent CountyThornapple Lake, Barry CountyArbutus Lake, Grand Traverse CountySixmile Lake, Charlevoix CountyEagle Lake, Cass CountyRose Lake, Osceola CountyPortage Lake, Jackson CountyLake of the Woods, Branch CountyLoon Lake, Gogebic CountyGoguac Lake, Calhoun CountyBig Bear Lake, Otsego CountyLong Lake, Ionia CountyGrass Lake, Jackson CountyWiggins Lake, Gladwin CountyDeer Lake, Keweenaw CountyThunder Lake, Schoolcraft CountyLake Chemung, Livingston CountyGrass Lake, Montmorency CountyBear Lake, Kalkaska CountyTamarack Lake, Montcalm CountyMurray Lake, Kent CountyBirch Lake, Antrim CountyPickerel Lake, Newaygo CountyLong Lake, Barry CountyBodi Lake, Luce CountyDeer Lake, Charlevoix CountyLake Mecosta, Mecosta CountyDuck Lake, Montcalm CountyShavehead Lake, Cass CountyLong Lake, Montmorency CountyColdwater Lake, Isabella CountyLake Esau, Presque Isle CountyPike Lake, Luce CountyLake Oakland, Oakland CountyAu Sable Lake, Ogemaw CountyStony Lake, Oceana CountyLake Nettie, Presque Isle CountyReeds Lake, Kent CountyMcLaren Lake, Oceana CountyNevins Lake, Alger CountyDonnell Lake, Cass CountyThompson Lake, Livingston CountySand Lake, Iosco CountyCedar Lake, Leelanau CountyWoodland Lake, Livingston CountyLake Sapphire, Missaukee CountyFourmile Lake, Washtenaw CountyWolverine Lake, Oakland CountyLoon Lake, Oakland CountyRyerson Lake, Newaygo CountyRush Lake, Montmorency CountyPeach Lake, Ogemaw CountyRoss Lake, Gladwin CountyBlue Lake, Mecosta CountyHalfmoon Lake, Washtenaw CountyNorth Lake, Washtenaw CountyMcCollum Lake, Oscoda CountyGourdneck Lake, Kalamazoo CountySilver Lake, Washtenaw CountyTea Lake, Oscoda CountyCavanaugh Lake, Washtenaw CountyLong Lake, St. Joseph CountyBostwick Lake, Kent CountyLittlefield Lake, Isabella CountyWest Londo Lake, Iosco CountyLondo Lake, Iosco CountyBills Lake, Newaygo CountyJewell Lake, Alcona CountyJoslin Lake, Washtenaw CountyFrenchman Lake, Chippewa CountyLittle Whitefish Lake, Montcalm CountyLong Lake, Gogebic CountyRainbow Lake, Montcalm CountyGreen Lake, Oakland CountyLong Lake, Oakland CountyTwin Lake (South), Cheboygan CountyNorth Dease Lake, Ogemaw CountyBudd Lake, Clare CountyPine Lake, Manistee CountyBuck Lake, Iron CountyBennett Lake, Livingston CountyBass Lake, Luce CountyKimball Lake, Newaygo CountyNichols Lake, Newaygo CountyClear Lake, Montmorency CountyOcqueoc Lake, Presque Isle CountyGilead Lake, Branch CountyFish Lake, Alger CountyClear Lake, Jackson CountyEast Lake, Menominee CountyBig Lake, Otsego CountyPickerel Lake, Kalamazoo CountyEast Lake, Luce CountyBruin Lake, Washtenaw CountyPickerel Lake, Newaygo CountyJose Lake, Iosco CountyOpal Lake, Otsego CountyWoodhull Lake, Oakland CountyColwell Lake, Schoolcraft CountyBear Lake, Hillsdale CountyGaylanta Lake, Montmorency CountyPerch Lake, Luce CountyHi-Land Lake, Livingston CountyBlue Lake, Kalkaska CountyWinfield Lake, Montcalm CountyArnold Lake, Clare CountyLake Emma, Presque Isle CountyHackert Lake, Mason CountyStarvation Lake, Kalkaska CountyCowden Lake, Montcalm CountyDerby Lake, Montcalm CountyTan Lake, Oakland CountySylvan Lake, Newaygo CountyCrooked Lake, Washtenaw CountyEllsworth Lake, Antrim CountyBush Lake, Oakland CountyCarney Lake, Dickinson CountyLong Lake, Oakland CountyBoot Lake, Schoolcraft CountyPickerel Lake, Kalkaska CountyLower Pettibone Lake, Oakland CountyLittle Portage Lake, Washtenaw CountyShupac Lake, Crawford CountyClam Lake, Antrim CountyNorth Lake, Alcona CountyGrousehaven Lake, Ogemaw CountyArgo Pond, Washtenaw CountyBellows Lake, Grand Traverse CountyBaptist Lake, Newaygo CountyRound Lake, Hillsdale CountyDodge Lake, Schoolcraft CountyLoon Lake, Oakland CountyEmerald Lake, Newaygo CountyLong Lake, Barry CountyElk Lake, Gladwin CountySauble Lake #1, Lake CountyBig Chub Lake, Otsego CountyPickerel Lake, Dickinson CountyWabascon Lake, Calhoun CountyOtter Lake, Lapeer CountySilver Lake, Cheboygan CountyHubbell Pond, Oakland CountyHeart Lake, Otsego CountyCrooked Lake, Oakland CountyStony Lake, Oakland CountySpectacle Lake, Montmorency CountyIndian Lake, Osceola CountyClear/Squaw Lake, Oakland CountyDiamond Lake, Osceola CountyProud Lake, Oakland CountyLittle Island Lake, Iosco CountyKaks Lake, Luce CountyNorway Lake, Dickinson CountyDavison Lake, Lapeer CountyCamp Seven Lake, Delta CountyCrooked Lake, Montmorency CountyBertha Lake, Clare CountyTurtle Lake, Benzie CountyPickerel Lake, Grand Traverse CountyFoch Lakes, Montmorency CountyDuck Lake, Leelanau CountyHorseshoe Lake, Ogemaw CountyTee Lake, Ogemaw CountyDavis Lake, Leelanau CountyTownline Lake, Clare CountyDuck Lake, Kalamazoo CountyStewart Lake, Oakland CountyVoyer Lake, Montmorency CountyMiddle Lake, Baraga CountyWeber Lake, Cheboygan CountySauble Lake #2, Lake CountyGraham Lakes, Oakland CountyRainbow Lake, Kalkaska CountyGreen Lake, Antrim CountyLost Lake, Alcona CountyLong Lake, Ogemaw CountySilver Lake, Washtenaw CountyCrystal Lake, Manistee CountyTwin Lakes, Cheboygan CountyKneff Lakes, Crawford CountyCrystal Lake, Montmorency CountyGlory Lake, Crawford CountySpring Mill Pond, Livingston County

Recorded here Other lakes with fish records

How we know

  • 248lakes where an angler registered one (Master Angler)
  • 107lakes where a DNR fisheries survey netted them

A lake can appear in more than one line. A lake that isn’t listed may still have them: records exist only where someone caught, netted or stocked them.

Inland lakes on this list run from 8 to 19,592 acres (median 273) and from 5 to 285 ft deep (median 47 ft).

When and how big rock bass are caught

From 3,289 Master Angler entries, 1965–2025, from all Michigan waters including the Great Lakes. An entry needs a fish at least 12 in, so these describe big fish that anglers chose to register — where and when people fish, not how many fish a lake holds.

Entries by month

The busiest month is June (27% of entries); 2% come in December–February (lighter bars), mostly through the ice.

Size of registered fish

Half were 11.8 in or less, and 9 in 10 were under 12.5 in.

Method

Spincasting48%
Still Fishing29%
Trolling11%
Drift Fishing9%
Ice Fishing3%

Bait

Worms and crawlers36%
Artificial lures27%
Live bait (type not given)15%
Minnows and baitfish12%
Leeches5%
Other2%

Share of entries that recorded a method (3,171) or a bait (2,032).

Lakes on this site with the most entries

  1. Houghton Lake, Roscommon 217
  2. Higgins Lake, Roscommon 202
  3. Lake St. Clair, St. Clair 186
  4. Black Lake, Cheboygan 151
  5. Clam Lake, Antrim 141
  6. Crystal Lake, Benzie 121
  7. Duck Lake, Grand Traverse 96
  8. Lake Leelanau, Leelanau 83
  9. Portage Lake, Manistee 78
  10. Platte Lake, Benzie 76

Master Angler entries matched to each lake. A busy lake gets more entries; this is not a ranking of fishing quality.

Often found with

Share of these lakes that also list each fish.

How to recognize it

A longer body and bigger mouth than most sunfish, red eyes, and six spines on the anal fin where other sunfish have three. Golden-brown to olive with a white or silver belly; rock bass can change color quickly to match their surroundings.

Don’t confuse it with

Green sunfish — Also big-mouthed for a sunfish, but with three anal spines and a pale edge to the ear flap.

Life in a Michigan lake

Rock bass eat small fish — sometimes their own young — along with insects and crayfish, and sometimes take food from the surface. They feed hardest in the evening and early morning.

Males dig nests in the shallows, often close together, and guard them aggressively. The male fans the eggs and cares for the young for a short time. Rock bass grow quickly.

Source: Michigan DNR species page.

Rules and eating

Check the rules before you keep fish. Each lake page shows the regulations that apply there, and the Michigan Fishing Guide is the official source. Before eating fish from a particular lake, check Michigan’s Eat Safe Fish guidelines.

All 304 lakes with rock bass

Show every lake, by county

Alcona County 5

Cedar Lake, Hubbard Lake, Jewell Lake, Lost Lake, North Lake

Alger County 5

Au Train Lake, Fish Lake, Grand Sable Lake, Nawakwa Lake, Nevins Lake

Alpena County 1

Fletcher Pond

Antrim County 8

Birch Lake, Clam Lake, Elk Lake, Ellsworth Lake, Green Lake, Intermediate Lake, Lake Bellaire, Torch Lake

Baraga County 2

Beaufort Lake, Middle Lake

Barry County 4

Gun Lake, Long Lake, Long Lake, Thornapple Lake

Bay County 1

Saginaw Bay

Benzie County 7

Crystal Lake, Lake Ann, Little Platte Lake, Lower Herring Lake, Platte Lake, Turtle Lake, Upper Herring Lake

Branch County 4

Coldwater Lake, Gilead Lake, Lake of the Woods, Union Lake

Calhoun County 3

Duck Lake, Goguac Lake, Wabascon Lake

Cass County 4

Diamond Lake, Donnell Lake, Eagle Lake, Shavehead Lake

Charlevoix County 6

Deer Lake, Lake Charlevoix, Lake Geneserath, Lake Thumb, Sixmile Lake, Walloon Lake

Cheboygan County 9

Black Lake, Burt Lake, Douglas Lake, Mullett Lake, Munro Lake, Silver Lake, Twin Lake (South), Twin Lakes, Weber Lake

Chippewa County 2

Frenchman Lake, Trout Lake

Clare County 5

Arnold Lake, Bertha Lake, Budd Lake, Eight Point Lake, Townline Lake

Crawford County 3

Glory Lake, Kneff Lakes, Shupac Lake

Delta County 4

Big Bay de Noc, Camp Seven Lake, Little Bay de Noc, Round Lake

Dickinson County 3

Carney Lake, Norway Lake, Pickerel Lake

Emmet County 3

Crooked Lake, Lake Paradise, Pickerel Lake

Genesee County 2

Lake Fenton, Lobdell Lake

Gladwin County 4

Elk Lake, Ross Lake, Wiggins Lake, Wixom Lake

Gogebic County 7

Cisco Lake, Crooked Lake, Lac Vieux Desert, Langford Lake, Long Lake, Loon Lake, Thousand Island Lake

Grand Traverse County 8

Arbutus Lake, Bellows Lake, Duck Lake, Fife Lake, Grand Traverse Bay, Green Lake, Long Lake, Pickerel Lake

Hillsdale County 2

Bear Lake, Round Lake

Huron County 1

Wildfowl Bay

Ionia County 1

Long Lake

Iosco County 9

Jose Lake, Little Island Lake, Londo Lake, Long Lake, Loon Lake, Sand Lake, Tawas Bay, Van Etten Lake, West Londo Lake

Iron County 2

Buck Lake, Hagerman Lake

Isabella County 2

Coldwater Lake, Littlefield Lake

Jackson County 3

Clear Lake, Grass Lake, Portage Lake

Kalamazoo County 4

Duck Lake, Gourdneck Lake, Gull Lake, Pickerel Lake

Kalkaska County 6

Bear Lake, Blue Lake, Lake Skegemog, Pickerel Lake, Rainbow Lake, Starvation Lake

Kent County 5

Bostwick Lake, Lincoln Lake, Murray Lake, Reeds Lake, Wabasis Lake

Keweenaw County 3

Deer Lake, Lac La Belle, Lake Gratiot

Lake County 2

Sauble Lake #1, Sauble Lake #2

Lapeer County 3

Davison Lake, Nepessing Lake, Otter Lake

Leelanau County 6

Cedar Lake, Davis Lake, Duck Lake, Glen Lake, Lake Leelanau, Lime Lake

Lenawee County 1

Devils Lake

Livingston County 7

Bennett Lake, Hi-Land Lake, Lake Chemung, Spring Mill Pond, Thompson Lake, Whitmore Lake, Woodland Lake

Luce County 7

Bass Lake, Bodi Lake, East Lake, Kaks Lake, North Manistique Lake, Perch Lake, Pike Lake

Mackinac County 6

Brevoort Lake, East Lake, Manistique Lake, Milakokia Lake, Millecoquins Lake, South Manistique Lake

Macomb County 1

Stony Creek Lake

Manistee County 4

Bear Lake, Crystal Lake, Pine Lake, Portage Lake

Marquette County 2

Lake Independence, Lake Michigamme

Mason County 2

Hackert Lake, Hamlin Lake

Mecosta County 5

Blue Lake, Chippewa Lake, Horsehead Lake, Lake Mecosta, Martiny Lake

Menominee County 1

East Lake

Midland County 1

Sanford Lake

Missaukee County 2

Crooked Lake, Lake Sapphire

Montcalm County 9

Cowden Lake, Crystal Lake, Derby Lake, Duck Lake, Little Whitefish Lake, Rainbow Lake, Tamarack Lake, Whitefish Lake, Winfield Lake

Montmorency County 12

Clear Lake, Crooked Lake, Crystal Lake, East Twin Lake, Foch Lakes, Gaylanta Lake, Grass Lake, Long Lake, Rush Lake, Spectacle Lake, Voyer Lake, West Twin Lake

Muskegon County 1

Muskegon Lake

Newaygo County 10

Baptist Lake, Bills Lake, Emerald Lake, Fremont Lake, Kimball Lake, Nichols Lake, Pickerel Lake, Pickerel Lake, Ryerson Lake, Sylvan Lake

Oakland County 28

Bush Lake, Cass Lake, Clear/Squaw Lake, Crooked Lake, Graham Lakes, Green Lake, Hubbell Pond, Kent Lake, Lake Oakland, Lake Orion, Lakeville Lake, Long Lake, Long Lake, Loon Lake, Loon Lake, Lower Pettibone Lake, Maceday Lake, Orchard Lake, Pontiac Lake, Proud Lake, Stewart Lake, Stony Lake, Tan Lake, Union Lake, Walled Lake, White Lake, Wolverine Lake, Woodhull Lake

Oceana County 3

McLaren Lake, Silver Lake, Stony Lake

Ogemaw County 8

Au Sable Lake, Grousehaven Lake, Horseshoe Lake, Long Lake, North Dease Lake, Peach Lake, Sage Lake, Tee Lake

Ontonagon County 1

Lake Gogebic

Osceola County 3

Diamond Lake, Indian Lake, Rose Lake

Oscoda County 2

McCollum Lake, Tea Lake

Otsego County 6

Big Bear Lake, Big Chub Lake, Big Lake, Heart Lake, Opal Lake, Otsego Lake

Presque Isle County 5

Grand Lake, Lake Emma, Lake Esau, Lake Nettie, Ocqueoc Lake

Roscommon County 2

Higgins Lake, Houghton Lake

Schoolcraft County 7

Boot Lake, Colwell Lake, Dodge Lake, Gulliver Lake, Indian Lake, McDonald Lake, Thunder Lake

St. Clair County 1

Lake St. Clair

St. Joseph County 3

Klinger Lake, Long Lake, Palmer Lake

Washtenaw County 11

Argo Pond, Bruin Lake, Cavanaugh Lake, Crooked Lake, Fourmile Lake, Halfmoon Lake, Joslin Lake, Little Portage Lake, North Lake, Silver Lake, Silver Lake

Wayne County 1

Belleville Lake

Wexford County 3

Hodenpyl Dam Pond, Lake Cadillac, Lake Mitchell

Sources

← All fish of Michigan