Ontario Lake Depths

Game fish · sunfish family

Largemouth bass

Micropterus nigricans · also called largemouth, black bass, bucketmouth

Native to OntarioRecorded in 423 Ontario lakes

Native to the lower Great Lakes and some inland waters of southern Ontario; populations farther north and in northwestern Ontario come from introductions.

Illustration of a largemouth bass in side view
AI-generated illustration, not a photograph and not to scale.
Typical adult
25–55 cm (10–22 in), 0.7–1.8 kg (1.5–4 lb)
Favours
Warm, weedy shallows of small lakes and bays
Spawns
May–June at 15–21 °C (59–70 °F)
Eats
Mainly fish, plus crayfish, frogs and large insects
Lives
Up to about 13–15 years in Ontario

Where largemouth bass have been recorded

423 of the 1,347 Ontario lakes on this site with angler catch reports list largemouth bass, across 32 counties and districts. Tap a dot to open that lake’s depth map.

Lake Nipissing, Nipissing DistrictLake Simcoe, York RegionWanapitei Lake, Sudbury DistrictKakagi Lake, Kenora DistrictRice Lake, Peterborough CountyPanache Lake, Sudbury DistrictSturgeon Lake, Kawartha LakesPigeon Lake, Peterborough CountyLake of Bays, MuskokaLake Scugog, Durham RegionBalsam Lake, Kawartha LakesRowan Lake, Kenora DistrictLake Joseph, MuskokaLake Kagawong, Manitoulin DistrictBig Rideau Lake, Leeds and GrenvilleMatinenda Lake, Algoma DistrictGolden Lake, Renfrew CountyAgnew Lake, Sudbury DistrictCharleston Lake, Leeds and GrenvilleRound Lake, Renfrew CountyBobs Lake, Frontenac CountyBig Gull Lake, Frontenac CountyMississippi Lake, Lanark CountyWhite Lake, Lanark CountyWeslemkoon Lake, Lennox and Addington CountyBaptiste Lake, Hastings CountyLake Bernard, Parry Sound DistrictLoughborough Lake, Frontenac CountyNewboro Lake, Leeds and GrenvilleLake Vernon, MuskokaLake Clear, Renfrew CountyNosebonsing lake, Nipissing DistrictBlack Donald Lake, Renfrew CountyAhmic Lake, Parry Sound DistrictChandos Lake, Peterborough CountyBlack Sturgeon Lakes, Kenora DistrictSharbot Lake, Frontenac CountyWicksteed Lake, Nipissing DistrictCentennial Lake, Renfrew CountyJack Lake, Peterborough CountyLake Dore, Renfrew CountyNorth Tea Lake, Nipissing DistrictCrotch Lake, Frontenac CountyDalrymple Lake, Kawartha LakesChiniguchi Lake, Sudbury DistrictKennisis Lake, Haliburton CountyCalabogie Lake, Renfrew CountyRestoule Lake, Parry Sound DistrictKashwakamak Lake, Frontenac CountySkootamatta Lake, Lennox and Addington CountyNepewassi Lake, Sudbury DistrictLower Buckhorn Lake, Peterborough CountyBright Lake, Algoma DistrictMuskrat Lake, Renfrew CountyRedstone Lake, Haliburton CountyLa Cloche Lake, Sudbury DistrictEcho Lake, Algoma DistrictChemong Lake, Peterborough CountyDevil Lake, Frontenac CountyTyson Lake, Sudbury DistrictGull Lake, Haliburton CountySparrow Lake, Simcoe CountyKasshabog Lake, Peterborough CountyCrowe Lake, Hastings CountyMary Lake, MuskokaEels Lake, Peterborough CountySand Lake, Leeds and GrenvilleDog Lake, Frontenac CountyLake of the Mountains, Algoma DistrictHaliburton Lake, Haliburton CountyCameron Lake, Kawartha LakesKahshe Lake, MuskokaHead Lake, Kawartha LakesCanal Lake, Kawartha LakesTrout Lake, Sudbury DistrictHealey Lake, Parry Sound DistrictMoira Lake, Hastings CountyKashagawigamog Lake, Haliburton CountyPeninsula Lake, MuskokaBelmont Lake, Peterborough CountyKabenung Lake, Algoma DistrictFour Mile Lake, Kawartha LakesPaudash Lake, Haliburton CountyCassels Lake, Nipissing DistrictFairbank Lake, Sudbury DistrictBuckhorn Lake, Peterborough CountySydenham Lake, Frontenac CountyEagle Lake, Frontenac CountyKushog Lake, Haliburton CountyChristie Lake, Lanark CountyLake St. John, Simcoe CountyLake Belwood, Wellington CountyAnstruther Lake, Peterborough CountyEugenia Lake, Grey CountyUpper Beverley Lake, Leeds and GrenvilleConstant Lake, Renfrew CountyConestogo Lake, Wellington CountyDalhousie Lake, Lanark CountyLake Cecebe, Parry Sound DistrictVarty Lake, Lennox and Addington CountyRaven Lake, Haliburton CountyBrule Lake, Frontenac CountyOtter Lake, Parry Sound DistrictRound Lake, Peterborough CountyMink Lake, Renfrew CountyBass Lake, Simcoe CountyKennebec Lake, Frontenac CountyPalmerston Lake, Frontenac CountyPercy Lake, Haliburton CountyBlindfold Lake, Kenora DistrictHalls Lake, Haliburton CountyBoat Lake, Bruce CountyCrane Lake, Parry Sound DistrictCrystal Lake, Peterborough CountySpider Lake, Parry Sound DistrictLang Lake, Sudbury DistrictHannah Lake, Sudbury DistrictLake Lulu, Kenora DistrictWhitefish Lake, Leeds and GrenvilleMississagua Lake, Peterborough CountyMuldrew Lakes, MuskokaWood Lake, MuskokaCloud Lake, Thunder Bay DistrictHorseshoe Lake, Parry Sound DistrictBig Hawk Lake, Haliburton CountyDesert Lake, Frontenac CountyBig Lake, Manitoulin DistrictGold Lake, Peterborough CountyThree Mile Lake, Parry Sound DistrictStormy Lake, Parry Sound DistrictBell Lake, Sudbury DistrictShadow Lake, Kawartha LakesHarris Lake, Parry Sound DistrictSandy Lake, Peterborough CountyLittle Hawk Lake, Haliburton CountyWollaston Lake, Hastings CountyRed Horse Lake, Leeds and GrenvilleGananoque Lake, Leeds and GrenvilleSoyers Lake, Haliburton CountyMount Lake, Algoma DistrictMuskosung Lake, Nipissing DistrictBig Clear Lake, Frontenac CountyMorrison Lake, MuskokaHungry Lake, Frontenac CountyDeer Lake, Nipissing DistrictMitchell Lake, Kawartha LakesHorseshoe Lake, Haliburton CountySteenburg Lake, Hastings CountyNorway Lake, Renfrew CountyBear Lake, Parry Sound DistrictBigwood Lake, Sudbury DistrictIndian Lake, Leeds and GrenvilleMoose Lake, Haliburton CountyPigeon River, Kawartha LakesLittle Lake Joseph, Parry Sound DistrictSherborne Lake, Haliburton CountyTurtle Lake, Nipissing DistrictCarson Lake, Renfrew CountyCordova Lake, Peterborough CountyFletcher Lake, Haliburton CountyGibson Lake, MuskokaCharlton Lake, Sudbury DistrictBuck Lake, Parry Sound DistrictShabomeka Lake, Frontenac CountyLovesick Lake, Peterborough CountyCanning Lake, Haliburton CountyAxe Lake, Parry Sound DistrictSilver Lake, Frontenac CountyFrood Lake, Sudbury DistrictLake St. Peter, Hastings CountyLittle Kennisis Lake, Haliburton CountyFanshawe Lake, LondonBob Lake, Haliburton CountyLittle Lake, BarrieBig Cedar Lake, Peterborough CountyGrace Lake, Haliburton CountyBig Bald Lake, Peterborough CountyWadsworth Lake, Renfrew CountyCamp Lake, MuskokaGlamor Lake, Haliburton CountyRound Lake, Parry Sound DistrictBig Bissett Lake, Nipissing DistrictFrench River, Sudbury DistrictPine Lake, Frontenac CountyBig Mink Lake, Hastings CountyGovan Lake, Frontenac CountyRound Schooner Lake, Frontenac CountyWaterloo Lake, Renfrew CountyShawenegog Lake, Frontenac CountyMoore Lake, Haliburton CountyWhite Lake, Peterborough CountyFarren Lake, Lanark CountyL'Amable Lake, Hastings CountyBig Clear Lake, Frontenac CountyElla Lake, Sudbury DistrictHalfway Lake, Renfrew CountyGrindstone Lake, Frontenac CountyLong Lake, Simcoe CountyDiamond Lake, Hastings CountySucker Lake, Peterborough CountyDotty Lake, MuskokaPuslinch Lake, Wellington CountyCentre Lake, Haliburton CountyBottle Lake, Peterborough CountyTrout Lake, Lennox and Addington CountySugar Lake, Parry Sound DistrictStar Lake, Parry Sound DistrictHowes Lake, Frontenac CountyRiley Lake, MuskokaMcFarlane Lake, Sudbury DistrictKingsford Lake, Frontenac CountyBull Lake, Frontenac CountyBeech Lake, Haliburton CountyBay Lake, Parry Sound DistrictMarsden Lake, Haliburton CountyMonck Lake, Haliburton CountyMcCauley Lake, Nipissing DistrictPine Lake, Nipissing DistrictElbow Lake, Frontenac CountyMcConnell Lake, Kenora DistrictWolf Lake, Peterborough CountyConger Lake, Parry Sound DistrictGreen Lake, Haliburton CountyNepahwin Lake, Sudbury DistrictTurtle Lake, Parry Sound DistrictOastler Lake, Parry Sound DistrictBass Lake, Peterborough CountySilent Lake, Haliburton CountyPuzzle Lake, Lennox and Addington CountyPine Lake, Haliburton CountyMcMaster Lake, Renfrew CountyBrodill Lake, Sudbury DistrictGould Lake, Bruce CountyCharlotte Lake, Renfrew CountyClear Lake, Parry Sound DistrictMacLean Lake, Simcoe CountyLittle Moon Lake, Algoma DistrictSucker Lake, Parry Sound DistrictRathbun Lake, Peterborough CountyTea Lake, Simcoe CountyBigwind Lake, MuskokaFarlain Lake, Simcoe CountyLittle Bald Lake, Peterborough CountyDavis Lake, Haliburton CountyKelly Lake, Haliburton CountyKakasamic Lake, Nipissing DistrictKulas Lake, Renfrew CountyPortage Lake, Parry Sound DistrictBruce Lake, MuskokaRedhorse Lake, Frontenac CountyMcKellar Lake, Parry Sound DistrictSheffield Long Lake, Lennox and Addington CountyCox Lake, Peterborough CountyLong Lake, Peterborough CountyCold Lake, Peterborough CountyBrady Lake, Haliburton CountyBeaver Lake, Parry Sound DistrictMoth Lake, Kenora DistrictBass Lake, MuskokaRapid Lake, Nipissing DistrictWhalley Lake, Parry Sound DistrictOld Mans Lake, Parry Sound DistrictGooderham Lake, Haliburton CountySouth Lake, Haliburton CountyCrawford Lake, Parry Sound DistrictDiamond Lake, Renfrew CountyKishkebus Lake, Frontenac CountyLovering Lake, Sudbury DistrictLong Lake, Haliburton CountyPine Lake, MuskokaDarling Long Lake, Lanark CountyRichard Lake, Sudbury DistrictPencil Lake, Peterborough CountyBig Gibson Lake, Renfrew CountyFortescue Lake, Peterborough CountyCranberry Lake, Haliburton CountyLittle Hannah Lake, Sudbury DistrictGurd Lake, Parry Sound DistrictSilver Lake, Parry Sound DistrictPark Lake, Algoma DistrictGrandview Lake, MuskokaSerpentine Lake, Peterborough CountyBon Echo Lake, Lennox and Addington CountyGrass Lake, Haliburton CountyEmsdale Lake, Parry Sound DistrictFosters Lake, Hastings CountyCrab Lake, Peterborough CountyCopper Lake, Peterborough CountyLeech Lake, Sudbury DistrictGrand River section, Waterloo RegionHead Lake, Haliburton CountyColbourne Lake, Haliburton CountyArrowhead Lake, MuskokaButterfly Lake, MuskokaHorseshoe Lake, Simcoe CountyPorcupine Lake, Sudbury DistrictLittle Glamor Lake, Haliburton CountyMercer Lake, Nipissing DistrictLittle Dudmon Lake, Haliburton CountyCrooked Chute Lake, Nipissing DistrictPopeye Lake, Algoma DistrictSilver Lake, Bruce CountySheldon Lake, Haliburton CountySandy Lake, Peterborough CountySilver Lake, MuskokaBeaverdam Lake, Renfrew CountyLower Island Lake, Algoma DistrictCrosson Lake, MuskokaUpper Cranberry Lake, Algoma DistrictWilcox Lake, York RegionCouchain Lake, Renfrew CountyWylie Lake, Renfrew CountyWest Lake, Haliburton CountyLittle Clear Lake, Frontenac CountyHaas Lake, Haliburton CountyNorth Pigeon Lake, Haliburton CountyLong Lake, Leeds and GrenvilleKillenbeck Lake, Leeds and GrenvilleDenna Lake, Haliburton CountyBasshaunt Lake, Haliburton CountyMusselman Lake, York RegionDuck Lake, Kawartha LakesRaccoon Lake, Peterborough CountyBat Lake, Haliburton CountySouth Beaver Lake, Haliburton CountyGuilford Lake, Haliburton CountyNewell Lake, Parry Sound DistrictSunday Lake, Nipissing DistrictPooh Lake, Renfrew CountyMoore Lake, Nipissing DistrictMorrow Lake, Renfrew CountyBlack Lake, Frontenac CountyShoe Lake, MuskokaFourth Deposit Lake, Frontenac CountyWilbermere Lake, Haliburton CountyFreen Lake, Hastings CountyBells Lake, Parry Sound DistrictCard Lake, Hastings CountyCripple Lake, Parry Sound DistrictRoney Lake, Renfrew CountyStevenson Lake, Renfrew CountyEarl Rowe Lake, Simcoe CountyParissien Lake, Renfrew CountyLittle Salmon Lake, Frontenac CountyMyers Lake, MuskokaTedious Lake, Haliburton CountyWilder Lake, Grey CountyDoe Lake, Frontenac CountyBig Limestone Lake, Renfrew CountyLasswade Lake, Peterborough CountyShark Lake, Peterborough CountyClear Lake, Parry Sound DistrictNorth Rathbun Lake, Peterborough CountySaw Lake, MuskokaBentshoe Lake, Haliburton CountyFirst James Lake, Renfrew CountyCruiser Lake, Haliburton CountyBucke Lake, Parry Sound DistrictConcession Lake, Peterborough CountyJacks Lake, Simcoe CountyBig Shingle Lake, Renfrew CountyBlack Lake, Haliburton CountyKettle's Lake, Simcoe CountySmith Lake, Renfrew CountyCardiff Lake, Haliburton CountyCherry Lake, Peterborough CountyTriangle Lake, Peterborough CountyHuey Lake, Renfrew CountyVictoria Lake, Kawartha LakesStorm Lake, Parry Sound DistrictLone Lake, MuskokaLimestone Lake, Renfrew CountyBlue Lake, Haliburton CountyMonrock Lake, Haliburton CountyCavendish Lake, Peterborough CountyLoon Lake, Lanark CountyHeart Lake, Peel RegionTimber Wolf Lake, Parry Sound DistrictTory Lake, Haliburton CountyGrenadier Pond, TorontoAdams Lake, Haliburton CountyGilbank Lake, Parry Sound DistrictLittle Cameron Lake, Haliburton CountyCedar Lake, Haliburton CountyClement Lake, Haliburton CountyWaterford Ponds (Middle Pond), Norfolk CountyMcCue Lake, Haliburton CountySpottiswood Lakes, Brant CountyLa Force Lake, Parry Sound DistrictMoffat Lake, Renfrew CountyBond Lake, York RegionPerch Lake, Lanark CountyPuffball Lake, Renfrew CountyBrennan Lake, Parry Sound DistrictColton Lake, Renfrew CountyCockle Lake, Haliburton CountyKretzel Lake, Renfrew CountyBurdock Lake, Haliburton CountyMYERS LAKE, MuskokaKeyhole Lake, MuskokaOval Lake, Renfrew CountyGardiner Lake, Renfrew CountyStevenson Lake, Renfrew CountyHarveys Shanty Lake, Renfrew CountyCave Lake, Sudbury DistrictSand Lake, Renfrew CountyLake Hunger, Norfolk CountyBottle Lake, Lanark CountyGut Lake, Parry Sound DistrictLake Whittaker, Middlesex CountyLittle Clear Lake, Peterborough CountySophia Lake, Peterborough CountyMoor Lake, Renfrew CountyIsland Lake, York RegionWerwolf Lake, Nipissing DistrictDuck Lake, Parry Sound DistrictOwl Lake, Renfrew CountyWhitefish River, Sudbury DistrictSweezy Lake, Renfrew CountyWestmeath Lake 1, Renfrew CountyScully Lake, Renfrew CountyDon Head Farm Pond, York RegionChallies Public Fishing Area Pond, Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry

Recorded here Other lakes with catch reports

How we know

  • 423lakes where an angler logged one in Fish ON-Line; on 171 of them a single trip, one angler’s report

Self-reported by anglers, not a Ministry survey. A lake that isn’t listed may still have them: a lake appears here only once an angler has logged this fish there.

Inland lakes on this list run from 7 to 221,497 acres (median 344) and from 5 to 408 ft deep (median 59 ft).

When and how anglers catch largemouth bass

From 1,174 trip reports naming largemouth bass on the lakes above, logged by anglers in Ontario’s Fish ON-Line app. These are self-reported trips, not a Ministry survey: they show when and how people fish for them, not how many fish a lake holds.

Trips by month

The busiest month is July (31% of trips); 5% were logged December–February (lighter bars).

How they were fishing

From a boat75%
From shore19%
Through the ice6%

Share of the 1,170 trips that recorded boat, shore or ice.

Fish reported

6,612 largemouth bass reported on these trips. Anglers kept 7% of the ones they reported and released the rest. The app records no sizes.

Lakes on this site with the most trips

  1. Lake Scugog, Durham Region 17
  2. White Lake, Lanark 17
  3. Rice Lake, Peterborough 16
  4. Big Mink Lake, Hastings 15
  5. Chemong Lake, Peterborough 14
  6. Pigeon Lake, Peterborough 13
  7. Constant Lake, Renfrew 12
  8. Buckhorn Lake, Peterborough 11
  9. Limestone Lake, Renfrew 11
  10. Mississippi Lake, Lanark 10

Trips that logged this fish on each lake. A busy lake gets more trips; this is not a ranking of fishing quality. 171 of the 423 lakes are listed on a single trip, one angler’s report.

Often found with

Share of these lakes that also list each fish.

How to recognize it

A heavy green bass with a broken dark stripe running along its side. The upper jaw extends past the back of the eye, and a deep notch almost separates the two dorsal fins.

Don’t confuse it with

Smallmouth bass — Its upper jaw stops at or before the eye, its sides show vertical bars instead of a lengthwise stripe, and its dorsal fins have only a shallow notch.
Rock bass — Much smaller and deeper-bodied, with a large red eye and rows of dark spots along the sides.

Up close

Illustration of a largemouth bass's head and front half from the side, mouth closed, with the upper jaw reaching past the back of the eye, a deep notch between the two parts of the dorsal fin, and a dark band along the side.
Largemouth bass: the upper jaw reaches past the back of the eye; the dorsal fin is almost split in two; a dark band runs along the side.
Illustration of a smallmouth bass's head and front half from the side, mouth closed, with the upper jaw ending below the eye, a shallow notch joining the two parts of the dorsal fin, and dark vertical bars on bronze-brown sides.
Smallmouth bass: the upper jaw ends below the eye, not past it; the dorsal fin is joined by a shallow notch; dark vertical bars on bronze-brown sides.

AI-generated close-ups, not photographs, drawn from the cited descriptions. They show what to look for; they are not a substitute for an expert identification (provenance).

Life in an Ontario lake

Largemouth bass are a warm-water fish of small lakes, ponds and the shallow, weedy bays of bigger lakes, and are rarely found deeper than about 6 m (20 ft). They stay close to thick cover such as cattails, lily pads, pondweed and sunken logs, and are rarely found over rocky ground, so they seldom share habitat with smallmouth bass even in the same lake. In winter they rest in a semi-dormant state.

Spawning starts in late spring once the water warms to about 15 °C (59 °F). Males nest over soft bottoms among bulrushes, lily pads or reeds and guard the eggs, which hatch in about five days, and then the young for up to a month. In Ontario they take about four to six years to reach 30 cm (12 in). The species is found in southern Ontario and the lower Great Lakes, and introductions have spread it through central and northwestern Ontario, though not into Lake Superior.

Source: the sources below.

Rules and eating

Before fishing, check the current Ontario Fishing Regulations Summary for your Fisheries Management Zone, any exceptions for the waterbody, and your licence type. Angler catch reports show what people logged, not what is legal to catch or keep. Fish ON-Line itself (how to use it) maps the zones and exceptions. Before eating fish from a particular lake, check the Guide to Eating Ontario Fish.

All 423 lakes with largemouth bass

Show every lake, by county

Barrie 1

Little Lake

Brant County 1

Spottiswood Lakes

Durham Region 1

Lake Scugog

Manitoulin District 2

Big Lake, Lake Kagawong

Middlesex County 1

Lake Whittaker

Peel Region 1

Heart Lake

Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry 1

Challies Public Fishing Area Pond

Thunder Bay District 1

Cloud Lake

Waterloo Region 1

Grand River section

Sources

← All fish of Ontario