Abstract Littoral minnow trap catch in three small (26−39-ha), dimictic, oligotrophic headwater lakes in northwestern Ontario, Canada, was monitored for 5 years before and after moderate to extensive watershed and shoreline clear-cutting. An abundant and diverse littoral fish community, dominated by Cyprinidae, persisted in the study lakes 5 years after logging, suggesting that logging impacts were small, compensatory, or delayed. The species richness of the catch among lakes ranged from 6 to 10 species and was constant within lakes. Although catch and average fish size varied significantly over the 10-year study, changes were not clearly linked with logging impacts. In the postlogging period, total catch was 17% less in the moderately disturbed lake (45% of watershed logged, with shoreline buffer strips) and 2−27% less in the two intensively disturbed lakes (75% of watershed and 60% of shoreline logged) than in the prelogging period. However, total catch began to decline 1−2 years before the experimental...