FLUCTUATIONS IN A PARTRIDGE POPULATION 133 



I believe that a policy of very intensive keepering has protected the game 

 which has consequently risen to its ceiling and thereafter shown only minor 

 and incidental variation. Blank & Ash's results showing small variations in 

 spring numbers may merely reflect variations in the partridges' environment. 



T. H. Blank: Certainly some variation in the breeding density is 

 attributable to crop changes, as I said and showed in my slides. 



D. H. Chitty: There seems to me to be a great difficulty because of the 

 large exodus of birds from the study area to unknown regions, and the 

 replacement of losses from elsewhere. Are you sure that the study area is not 

 an atypical one as a sample ? 



T. H. Blank: Fordingbridge is certainly not atypical of the area in 

 which it hes, except in being very well keepered. It is this good keepering, 

 as compared with the adjoining ground, that has led to our very high 

 partridge density. 



