Reports of Field Agents 295 



Water fowl arc still very i)lentifLil throutjjh this region, yd I have questioned 

 manv of the older residents and otlu-rs and lind that there is little comparison 

 between the number of birds now and those of a few years ago. Ducks, Geese 

 and Swan were there in sue h numbers, a few years ago, that it seems a few years 

 could make but little difference. Yet I am told that on account of the unre- 

 stricted shooting there has been a constant noticeable decrease year by year. The 

 wholesale decrease has been within the last five or si.x years. 



In the past, there has been no warden to protect the great region al><)ut Mal- 

 heur and Harney Lakes, but, in order to see that the game laws are obeyed, 

 through State Game Warden Stevenson we have secured the ap])ointment of 

 two wardens, one at Burns, Mr. George Sizcmore, and one at Narrows, Mr. 

 Charles Fitzgerald. 



The attention of the National Association is called to the condition of some 

 of the larger animals in this state. On account of insufBcient protection, some 

 of these are rapidly disappearing and are likely to become extinct in this state 

 unless needed protection is secured. There are a few bands of elk left in the state, 

 and a law should be enacted giving these animals complete protection for five or 

 ten years. 



Mountain sheep are now very scarce in Oregon. They have never been 

 found except in the eastern part of the state. As we have had no law for the 

 protection of these animals, they have disappeared rapidly. 



Antelope were formerly quite common through southeastern Oregon, especi- 

 ally in Harney and Malheur counties. Dr. L. E. Hibbard, of Burns, estimates 

 that there are now not more than twenty-five hundred antelope in Harney county. 

 The antelope has marvelous vitality, but its home is on the open plain. It has 

 absolutely no retreat from the modern long-range rifle. It is readily hunted to 

 extinction. As population advances, this animal must go unless some radical 

 steps are taken. The following is a good example of how the antelope have 

 disappeared. 



Five years ago, in Harney Valley a bunch of forty-five antelope lived on 

 the rye-grass flats southeast of Burns. They ranged from there to the east side 

 of the valley. They could be seen almost any day during the summer of 1903. 

 By T905 the herd had decreased to about twenty-five. Now all these antelope 

 have disappeared. Years ago plenty of antelope ranged north of Burns. These 

 have disappeared. This is an example of what has been and will be repeated 

 as population increases, until the last antelope is gone. Immediate protection 

 is needed for those remaining. 



