Another survey was directed towards determining the 

 length of time that regeneration continued to supply avail- 

 able food after the previous stand was cut. In some of the 

 areas investigated in Kapuskasing District, browse was still 

 plentiful after 17 years. 



Good moose management practices must be based on 

 accurate information. In 1970, further advances were made 

 in recording the success of the annual moose hunt, and 

 progress was made in the relatively new study of the forest 

 as it affects moose. We are confident that any local problems 

 of overharvesting can be quickly solved. In the long-term, it 

 is the range on which the moose depend which will deter- 

 mine the future of moose in Ontario. The Section will strive 

 to investigate all significant problems to ensure that moose 

 will continue to provide the many benefits of outdoor 

 recreation. 



BEAR MANAGEMENT 



In recent years, the black bear has gained popularity with 

 hunters and recreationists, and therefore proper manage- 

 ment is becoming more important. The goal of black bear 

 management is to provide opportunities for recreation and 

 economic benefit to the people of Ontario. 



The continued success of our management program is 

 indicated by the increasing sale of spring bear hunting 

 licences. Sales of licences to residents have increased from 

 1,359 in 1969 to 1,517 in 1970, an increase of 127o. Sales of 

 non-resident licences have increased from 9,400 in 1969 to 

 10,995 in 1970, an increase of 17%. Since most non-resident 

 bear hunters spend $80 to 90 on their hunt, the exchange of 

 money generated by spring bear hunting in Ontario is fast 

 approaching the million dollar mark. 



Many hunters kill bear incidentally while hunting deer or 

 moose in the fall. The export of bear from northwestern 

 Ontario has increased from 248 in 1969 to 409 in 1970. Bear 

 are increasingly important as a supplement to deer and 

 moose hunting. 



The nuisance-bear problem continued to decrease in im- 

 portance during 1970 as few problem bears were reported. 

 The problems raised by these bear may be related to the 

 abundance of wild berries. Bear may range much farther 

 when berries are scarce and thus come into more frequent 

 contact with humans. Bear which find food near human 

 habitations frequently return in search of more. 



The traditional way of handling the problem is to shoot 

 the bear. This is still necessary on some occasions, but in 

 many instances we have been able to remove bear by trap- 

 ping, drugging, transporting and releasing them. Very few 



bear return to the scene of the trouble. During the past year, 

 nine districts used this humane method of removing un- 

 wanted bear. 



UPLAND GAME MANAGEMENT 



Upland game management objectives include regulations to 

 permit maximum use of resident small game species, several 

 of which are usually under-harvested; encouragement of 

 practices which increase the production of small game; and 

 accurate predictions of the annual availability of small game. 



Upland game hunting continued to be a popular recrea- 

 tion in Ontario. During the 1969-70 season, 361,997 resident 

 small game and summer hunting licences and 7,500 non- 

 resident small game licences were sold. 



RUFFED GROUSE 



The past year showed a marked improvement in populations 

 of ruffed grouse across most of the Province. There was little 

 question that the nine-year cycle was on an upswing; of 

 districts reporting, only two indicated fewer grouse based on 

 summer observations. Better availability of grouse was re- 

 flected in information collected during the hunting season. 

 Hunters on foot took 31 grouse per hundred hours in 1970, 

 compared with 25.8 in the previous year. Hunters on bush 

 roads took 5.1 grouse per hundred miles, a marked increase 

 from the average of 2.1 recorded the year previously. Better 

 hunter success was recorded in nearly every district. A fur- 

 ther increase in availability of birds and hunter success was 

 predicted for 1971. 



SHARPTAILED GROUSE 



Prairie sharptailed grouse were in good supply in north- 

 western Ontario. Fort Frances District personnel live-trapped 

 and transferred 50 prairie sharptails which were released in 

 Grenville County. This year, a taped recording of courtship 

 calls heard on a dancing ground were played at dawn at the 

 release site. This was thought responsible for holding the 

 released birds in a restricted area — which is essential if they 

 are to set up their own dancing ground prior to nesting. 

 This was the second consecutive year in which prairie sharp- 

 tails were released in Grenville County; the initial release in 

 1969 dispersed rather widely since there were no taped 

 dancing ground calls to hold them on the release site. 



There is evidence to suggest that the first introduction of 

 prairie sharptailed grouse in Lindsay District in 1963 is be- 

 coming more firmly established. 



RING-NECKED PHEASANTS 



Ring-necks were in reasonable supply in extreme, south- 

 western Ontario and in the Regional Municipality of 



10 



