BUEEAU OF BIOLOGICAL SUEVEY. 443 



Iowa and Minnesota officials, to determine the advisability of drain- 

 ing the area. 



Another representative of the bureau, while investigating the 

 condition of migratory wild fowl in North Dakota, with special 

 reference to the breeding of wild geese, made an examination of the 

 Chase Lake Bird Reservation. Reports of damage to shocked 

 wheat by mallards in Kidder County, N. Dak., before the opening 

 of the shooting season, were also investigated and found to be borne 

 out by the facts. About the same time Island Lake, in Aitkin 

 County. Minn., proposed as a game refuge, was thoroughly examined. 

 It was found to be a comparatively small wooded island, and while 

 its fauna and flora were found to be interesting, its establishment 

 as a Federal game refuge was not considered desirable. 



In April, a member of the staff, while investigating the distribu- 

 tion of birds and mammals in Florida, visited the Island Pond and 

 Spruce Creek breeding rookeries near Maytown, and a series of 

 rookeries on Sebastian River near Roseland, for the purpose of 

 estimating the numbers of breeding herons, egrets, and ibises. 



WILD LIFE ON NATIONAL AND STATE PARKS AND FORESTS. 



An assistant of the bureau made an examination of the Grand 

 Canyon National Game Preserve, Ariz., late in September and eavlj in 

 October, to obtain information regarding conditions affecting game, 

 with special reference to making plans for disposing of the surplus 

 deer on this refuge. Reports indicated that the mule deer on this pre- 

 serve, the only large game there, had increased to such an extent 

 as to overstock the ranges, especially in summer. The trip was a 

 cooperative one, the Biological Survey representative being associ- 

 ated with officials of the Forest Service concerned with the admin- 

 istration of the Kaibab National Forest, within the boundaries of 

 which the game preserve is located. Deer were found to be very 

 abundant, it being estimated that upward of 20,000 were present. 

 Late in March and early in April, 1923, another investigation was 

 made of the region, the personnel including the same bureau repre- 

 sentative and most of the same members of the Forest Service. 



In general, the observations made on this trip confirmed the find- 

 ings of the previous examination. Notable concentration of deer 

 was observed in certain areas of bench land so situated topographi- 

 cally that movement of the animals to less crowded sections was dif- 

 ficult. While no suffering from lack of winter forage is yet apparent, 

 excessive utilization of the summer forage is evident, as well as 

 undesirable concentration on parts of the winter range, and it is be- 

 lieved that material reduction in the number of the deer is advis- 

 able, unless migration to less crowded areas can be induced. 



Following the investigation of the Grand Canyon Game Preserve 

 an examination was nuide, in cooperation with the National Park 

 Service, of the Tonto Plateau, Grand Canyon National Park, to ascer- 

 tain its suitability as a prospective preserve for antelope. The area 

 was found to be fairly well suited to this purpose, except that it is 

 considerably overgrazed by burros, the descendants of animals aban- 

 doned in the canyon many years ago. Since the burros serve no use- 

 ful purpose, their removal or elimination is considered advisable, 



