but survival past fry size was low as the pond had lots of predator fish as in largemouth bass.
This is key... It is a rare man made BOW that supports a naturally reproducing trout population. Even larger reservoirs that have large feeder creeks with temperatures cold enough to support trout and conditions suitable to their reproduction, the young trout just don't make it to adulthood. Most of those reservoirs also contain bass, walleye, pike and other fish that would gladly chow down on a 3" trout. Young trout require very specific habitat to allow them to survive to adulthood. Few creeks have this...
