Big Game 



Research on deer, moose and woodland caribou is concerned with the 

 development of techniques for measuring numbers and with the assessment of 

 factors affecting populations. The objectives of such studies are to understand the 

 action of these factors and through modification of their effects to maintain 

 optimum populations of big game animals in areas where they may be hunted. 

 Statistics about deer and moose numbers, hunting pressure and hunting success 

 were collected from study areas in Tweed, Parry Sound and Sioux Lookout Forest 

 Districts. These are providing data on population changes in deer and moose and 

 the effects of hunting on them. In addition, in co-operation with the Ontario 

 Veterinary College, blood and tissue samples were collected at these checking 

 stations to establish the incidence of leptospirosis in deer and moose. Analyses 

 of these samples showed that 18% of the deer and 4% of the moose were affected. 

 As yet, no one knows if this disease which causes abortion in cattle is a major 

 influence on deer or moose numbers. 



Other studies on moose are principally concerned with the effects of heavy 

 hunting pressure on populations. Statistics and specimens collected at a checking 

 station on the Red Lake road are now being studied to assess the reproductive rate 

 of those herds which support extremely heavy hunting pressure. A report on this 

 is anticipated for the coming year. 



Winter surveys of woodland caribou populations were confined to density 

 studies of the herd in the Woodland Crown Game Preserve. Mapping of distribu- 

 tions and densities of herds in the northern Patricia Districts are now almost com- 

 plete. Summer studies of herd distributions and their relation to food and 

 topography were continued to provide a basis for future research on productivity 

 and mortality factors. Complete reports on all caribou research are in preparation. 



Upland Game and Waterfowl 



The objective of this research is to obtain information about several species 

 of upland game and waterfowl which can be used to improve hunting opportunities 

 in agricultural areas of the province. 



Most research, since the unit was reactivated in 1961, has been on the char- 

 acteristics of the 18 species of grouse that are found throughout the world. More 

 intensive studies of two, sharp-tailed grouse and prairie chicken, which occur in 

 western, central and northern parts of the province are nearing completion This 

 research has encompassed various attributes of each species; morphology, 

 taxonomic relationships, and characteristics of behaviour and breeding. We expect 

 that such intensive studies will be of real value in the future when public demand 

 for increased hunting will necessitate more intensive management of these species. 



The research on methods of assessing the reproductive success of Canada 

 geese in the Hudson Bay Lowlands is progressing well. The success of this work 

 is of immediate concern to the federal, provincial and state agencies in Canada 

 and the United States represented on the Mississippi Flyway Council since northern 

 Ontario is one of the major production areas for Canada geese hunted in the mid- 

 western parts of the continent. The technique of taking low-level vertical photo- 

 graphs of flocks of geese along aerial transects is now providing good results. 

 There is still considerable difficulty, however, in interpreting these results since the 

 adult-to-young ratios, which are shown in the photographs, do not give a measure 

 of the numbers of non-breeding birds. Further research is required before the 

 method can be used with confidence for setting autumn bag limits for geese. 



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