| Water temperature is in upper 50's throughout the district. Levels are once again on the rise. If you have angling questions, please call Bellevue Fisheries Management at 563-880-8781. |
| Bluegill - No Report: Lots of bluegills were caught during the ice fishing season and expect good open water fishing on gills this year. |
| Walleye - Slow: Walleye bite has been slow. Most walleyes have spawned by now and usually bite starts to pick back up on wingdams in the next few weeks. |
| Water level at Bellevue is rising and near 9.4 feet. Water is clear with the temperature around 58 degrees in the main channel. |
| Bowfin - Good: Bowfin are good early season biters. Try backwater areas like the Green Island Wildlife area for some early season fun! |
| Brown Bullhead - Good: The lower pool access sites are good places to fish off the bank to catch brown bullhead and an occasional catfish. Bullheads are good early season biters |
| Northern Pike - No Report: Expecting the pike to start biting again soon as populations are very good in Pool 13. |
| Paddlefish - No Report: Paddlefish snagging season is now closed. |
| Rainbow Trout - Excellent: The Kids trout pond North of the DNR fisheries station is stocked with trout and should remain good fishing till the April/May time frame when it will weed over. |
| Yellow Perch - Good: Some are being caught in tailwaters on small jigs and worm rigs. |
Excellent Fishery! Mississippi River fisheries are varied with nearly 100 species of fish being present in each Pool. Pool 13 is especially noted for quality Largemouth Bass fishing, sunfish, paddlefish (in season), crappie, and catfish. Some other fisheries are coming on strong as well including smallmouth bass and northern pike. White bass are certainly present and fishing for them has been a little hit or miss in the past few years. Freshwater drum are always a staple and easy to catch in any moderate flowing current areas. (2025)
In nearly all cases, Iowa fish are safe to eat. Cleaning and/or preparing the meal causes most of the problems regarding taste or color of fish. Like all living creatures, fish are susceptible to diseases, parasites, and other naturally occurring conditions in the water. If you suspect your fish is affected by any of these conditions, do not eat it. Consider eating smaller and younger fish which usually have lower levels of contaminants than larger ones. Most contaminants accumulate in larger, older fish. For additional information, check out our resources for eating and cooking Iowa caught fish.
To learn more about fish tissue monitoring, visit our Fish Tissue Monitoring page .