24 REPORT OF BOARD OF FISH AND GAME COMMISSIONERS. 



Alameda, Sonoma, Shasta, and Humboldt counties. Reports that have 

 come in are very promising and we believe that before many years the 

 wild turkey will be one of our most prized game birds. A report of 

 the turkey plantings made in the southern Sierra, by Deputy A. D. 

 Ferguson of Fresno, will be found in the Board's 1913 Game Bulletin 

 No. 1. 



Hungarian partridges have been given a good trial but as yet no 

 success has been met with. There have been very few places where 

 they have been seen in recent months. It is possible that the Hun- 

 garian partridge will show up in unexpected places and that we may 

 yet have this bird permanently within our State. 



GAME REFUGES. 



As game becomes scarcer and hunters work farther and farther into 

 the breeding country, it will become more and more essential that 

 certain places be left where game can have an absolute refuge. From 

 these refuges game will spread to the surrounding open country where 

 the hunters may have a chance to secure a fair bag. The more numerous 

 these refuges can be, the more game will there be for the people of the 

 State. The benefits that are to be derived from a protected area of this 

 sort are well shown in San Mateo County. In that county there are 

 approximately 20,000 acres of Spring Valley Water Company land. 

 On this land there is practically no hunting. The deer are undisturbed 

 here at all times. In the fall of the year the bucks begin to travel and 

 may be found in every part of the county. During the present year 

 there v/ere killed about 154 bucks. Were it not for the Spring Valley 

 preserved land, it is safe to say that not one tenth of this number 

 would have been taken. If a game refuge could be established in every 

 county in the State, we would be sure of a perpetual supply of game. 

 There are many places that could be easily acquired at present, but as 

 more settlers work in it will be more and more difficult, so that the 

 time to commence is now. 



GAME REARING. 



In this connection it is well to say a word concerning domestic propa- 

 gation of game. As it becomes more and more necessary to remove all 

 the wild game from the markets, the public demands something to take 

 its place. This can well be supplied from that raised in captivity. We 

 have thousands of acres of land in this State that is excellent range for 

 deer and upon which few of our domesticated animals can survive. 

 This land, when properly fenced, would bring in a steady income as 

 deer farms. Venison is one of the most delicious of all meats, and would 

 command a high price at all times. The writer is informed by one of the 

 leading butchers of San Francisco that he could secure from $1.00 to 

 $1.50 per pound for all the venison he could obtain. Both deer and elk 

 are readily domesticated. A law allowing the sale of such animals would 

 not make it any more difficult to protect the wild animals ; on the other 

 hand, it would supply the demand for venison and would remove the 



