So I bought 17 acres with a small (.25 to .4 acre) pond that was stocked with GESF. The first year, I could catch small fish, usually on the first cast or at least see several small fish chase the bait. For the last year it has been very dry, the pond is not dry but has shrunk considerably. I am down maybe 8 feet from where it was in the spring two years ago. I have made a few trips over the last year and I no longer see any fish chase the lure, no bites. I am thinking my fish have died off. I don't think GESF was a great first choice for stocking so I am not that disappointed. I am thinking catfish for the next round, I can set up a feeder if needed. The tank gets seasonal runoff but it has been a very dry year.

Thoughts?

Jack

Might be a good time to use lime to pH shock the pond and be sure to be starting with a clean slate. Might also be a good time to see if there are any leaks that you can plug. My experience with channel catfish is that they are surprisingly sensitive to low oxygen, at least when they get big. Had a winterkill a while back, and that was the only species killed off. LMB and BG repopulated.

I would like to echo RAH's comments about treating for leaks to help since rain is scarce

If you haven't done so, you should put a measuring stake in to see how much you loose per day.

What the heck is a GESF??

Jack, what part of Texas? A lot of this stuff is regional dependent. If you're short on rain, we just might be neighbors. Calling it a tank sounds like West Texas.