INTRODUCTION 37 



twenty-two years. Another had 49,000 to its credit in twenty years. Then take the 

 Canvas-backs, Red-heads, Ruddies, and other ducks shot by batteries and bush 

 blinds in the open Sound, and we must conclude that from this one region, not over 

 forty miles long, with its clubs and its market shooters, between 100,000 and 125,000 

 ducks were taken each season, and in exceptional years probably 150,000. 



The first attempt at anything like an analysis of the total game shot in a season 

 was made by the Minnesota Commissioner in 1919. Each holder of a shooting- 

 license was asked to report all the game taken during the season, and this resulted in 

 a very interesting set of figures. Granted a large error in the recording of the birds 

 shot — for many sportsmen did not report — besides errors in computation of the 

 totals, we must admit their value as a starting-point. Even if we halve them, the 

 results are quite beyond preconceived notions of actual numbers of ducks in any one 

 place. The Minnesota list gives the number of ducks taken in 1919 as 1,804,000, and 

 in 1920 as 1,180,000, these figures being still subject to revision. If we take one 

 million as a basis for an average for this State, and sit down with a map of the United 

 States before us, using such figures as I have already outlined for famous ducking 

 grounds, and taking the country State by State, we arrive at a total which is almost 

 staggering. I cannot place it at less than 6,000,000 and I doubt if it is under 10,000,- 

 000. For the present, the closing of markets, the shortening of the season, and the 

 bag-limit have perhaps reduced the annual toll by one half; but we must feel quite 

 certain that all the factors which have helped to save the situation will be more than 

 made up for in the future by the increase in hunters' licenses, the growth of indus- 

 tries, and drainage. 



To sum up, these estimates, and many more which might be produced, serve to 

 show us what enormous numbers of wild-fowl actually exist, and can continue to do 

 so provided they have the proper places to live and breed in and are given reasonable 

 protection. We must remember that they withstood the most persistent and de- 

 structive methods of hunting, such as the decoy systems of England and Holland, 

 so long as their feeding grounds remained intact, but just as soon as these were 

 reduced beyond a certain point, the numbers which were annually taken fell away 

 rapidly. 



DAMAGE 



Certainly ducks do some damage to crops where they arrive in large numbers be- 

 fore the grain is harvested, but it is usually an easy matter to carry on a campaign of 

 "f rightfulness" which will keep them out of the crops. The only serious complaints 

 in the United States have been from the rice-growers of California and Arkansas. 

 Rice ripens late in the season, so that migrants arrive in enormous numbers and 

 special means have to be adopted to keep them out. Aeroplanes have been useful, 

 although harmful to the ducks, and a certain amount of shooting has been permitted 



