Will stunted fish grow bigger once the problem area is corrected, or does it take another generation?
Great advice so far. I'm intrigued by the 6-8" SMB fish kills if indeed they are fat and getting enough to eat. A diluted oxygen (DO) crash in the summer, perhaps? My first guess would have been that they were too skinny and no getting enough nutrition, but that seems like it is not the case.
To answer the quoted question above--Yes, the stunted fish will grow larger once the problem is corrected. More food and less competition = longer and fatter SMB. However, the stunted ones cannot compensate for the lost time. They'll get larger, but they'll be behind the curve for their age. The yoy, if they get enough forage, have the potential to get larger than the stunted parents.
