Sunil, I have 2, potentially or used to be, one acre ponds and a half dozen much smaller ones. The smaller ones, up to 1/4 acre, are history.

To add to what I said above, I got less than 10 inches of rain in 2005. The dry ground absorbed it all and I got virtually no runoff. Average evaporation, according to Lusk, for my area is 88 inches.

Mike Otto said, in Georgia, that he isn't digging ponds in our area. Not enough moisture to bind the clay. However, he is staying quite busy cleaning out dry ones.

The telling statement above, by Lusk, is that there may be real concern about oak and other tree survival. Otto reports that in a lot of places the soil is dry down to 5 ft. That's why I really can't be too optimistic about the survival of my ponds. Another good indicator is that I recently started feeling guilty about not watering my lawn at home in the D/FW area. Heck, I never water in the winter. When I did, most of the water ran off instead of being absorbed by the soil. The ground was just too hard. Now, that's dry.

It's not about the fish. It's about the pond. Take care of the pond and the fish will be fine. PB subscriber since before it was in color.

Without a sense of urgency, Nothing ever gets done.

Boy, if I say "sic em", you'd better look for something to bite. Sam Shelley Rancher and Farmer Muleshoe Texas 1892-1985 RIP Grandpa