58 FISH AND GAME COMMISSION 



It is believed that excellent results can be secured by the estab- 

 lishment of breeding areas in the parts of the State where the elevation 

 is approximately 4000 feet, particularly in the northeastern counties. 

 In this region many natural marsh areas have been destroyed by 

 drainage and on account of the dry cycle of years that we have experi- 

 enced, it has been found that drainage, for the most part, has been a 

 mistake and that the land will be of greater value as stock range if 

 restored to its original condition. The committee has under considera- 

 tion the development of several areas that can be handled at compara- 

 tively little cost to the State. 



DEVELOPMENT 



After a refuge is secured there is an immense amount of work 

 necessary in order that it may be maintained in the best possible con- 

 dition. With water held throughout the year, tule growth will 

 gradually encroach on the open water area. In the northern part of 

 the State ditches can be cleared to the best advantage by drag line; 

 in the Imperial Valley where the soil is light, tule growth can be con- 

 trolled by increasing the depth of the water. Where the soil is heavy, 

 this can only be done by plowing and burning. 



On all areas, the growth of natural duck food plants must be 

 encouraged and other feeds established. It is reasonable to say that 

 during the duck season of last year approximately a million and a 

 half birds spent the entire season on and in the vicinity of the refuge 

 areas. With the development of what we already have and the estab- 

 lishment of other areas, it is believed that duck shooting in our State 

 will be stabilized and not subject to the irregularities that have pre- 

 vailed in past years. 



CALIFORNIA ELK REFUGE 



In the 22d biennial report of 1911-12, the writer and Dr. Joseph 

 Grinnell of the Universitv of California, after making a survey of the 



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■Mi. 



■ts**^* , 



Fig. 15. Kern County elk refuge. 



elk conditions in Kern County, recommended that an area of land be 

 secured on which the elk then ranging in the western part of Kern 

 County could be confined by a seven-foot fence. Through the 

 cooperation of the Board of Supervisors of Kern County and the 

 State Park Commission, a tract of land has been purchased and the 



