314 BIRD-LIFE IN WESTERN CANADA 



That laws prohibiting the killing of wild-fowl at this sea- 

 son, and the destruction of their nests and eggs, have been 

 passed and are enforced is not enough. The draining of 

 sloughs and raising of cattle cannot be treated as violations 

 of the game-laws and still both may be more destructive 

 than many men with guns. A more effective form of pro- 

 tection is needed and this can best be secured by the creation 

 of reservations or bird refuges. If it seems impracticable 

 because of their value to the stock raiser, to set aside 

 sloughs and lake borders for this purpose, no good reason 

 appears to exist for refusing to give the birds title, for all 

 time, to the islets and ''reefs" which are found in many of 

 the lakes of this region. These islets are rarely if ever of 

 value to the ranchman, and they already are of infinite value 

 to the birds. Protected by water from their natural ene- 

 mies, many birds are wholly restricted to them in the nest- 

 ing season, and with a wise treatment of this question by 

 the Canadian Government, they would become the wild-fowl 

 nurseries of western Canada. 





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Double-crested Cormorants 



