GAME AND WILD-FUR PRODUCTION AND UTILIZATION 



29 



tural land is not providing the quantity of desirable wildlife habitat 

 that could be realized by economical and feasible management. The 

 percentages also indicate that approximately 84 percent of the wildlife 

 habitat considered economically feasible of improvement is on agri- 

 cultural land, with such land not in farms presenting the greatest 

 possibilities for wildlife habitat improvement. An inspection of the 

 uses made of nonagricultural land shows that there is little possibility 

 of habitat improvement on this land. Privately owned land provides 

 more than 71 percent of the wildlife habitat that is economically prac- 

 ticable for improvement. 



GAME AND WILD FUR PRODUCED AND HARVESTED ON AGRICULTURAL LANDS 



As all of the estimated favorable habitat of farm game, approxi- 

 mately 50 percent of that of forest and range game, and about 40 

 percent of that of migratory game, is agricultural land, it appears that 

 at least 80 to 85 percent of the game has been produced on agricultural 

 land as defined in this publication. Indications are that in recent 

 years farm game has constituted approximately 68 percent of the kill, 

 forest and range game 21 percent, and migratory game 11 percent. 



Table 4. — Estimated acreage on ivhich it is considered economically feasible 

 to improve food and cover for wildlife, by classes of land, 1935 





Ownership 



Total 

 area 



Percent- 

 age 

 econom- 

 ically 

 feasible 

 to im- 

 prove for 

 food and 

 cover i 



Economically feasible to 

 improve for food and 

 cover 



Class of land 



Area 2 



Per- 

 cent- 

 age of 

 all 

 food 

 and 

 cover 2 



Per- 

 cent- 

 age of 

 total 

 land 

 area 

 of the 

 United 

 States 



Agricultural land: 

 Land in farms: 



Cropland . . 



Private 



1,000 acres 

 3 415, 335 

 ? 409, 805 

 3 185, 475 

 3 43, 900 



Percent 

 30 

 67 

 90 

 90 



1,000 acres 

 124, 601 

 275, 863 

 166. 928 

 39, 510 



Percent 



9.6 



21.2 



12.8 



3.0 



Percent 

 6 5 



Open pasture 



Woodland. . . 



._..do 



do 



14.5 



8 8 



All other land 



do 



2.1 



Total 



1, 054, 515 



58 



606, 902 



46.6 



31 9 





Public 





Land not in farms: 



Forest and woodland grazed. 

 Do . 



* 132, 612 



* 143, 100 



* 163, 353 



* 97 700 



90 

 90 



90 



119, 350 

 128. 790 



147,018 



87, 930 



9.2 

 9.9 



11.3 



6.7 



6.3 



Nonforest and woodland 

 grazed 



Public 



7.7 



Nonforest and woodland 

 grazed. . ._. 





4 6 











Total 



• ; 536, 765 90 



483, 088 



37.1 



25 4 









All agricultural land. ... .. 



1, 591, 280 fix 



1.089,990 



83.7 



57.3 













Phese percentages were estimated by biologists and economists who are thoroughly 

 familiar with land use, agriculture, and wildlife habitat in each State and were based 

 upon a study of each class of land. 



2 The figures in this column show only the acreage on which it is considered economically 

 feasible to improve food and cover. They do not pretend to consider quality of food and 

 cover which really determine the wildlife carrying capacity of the area. 



3 Data from the 1935 agricultural census. 



1 Compiled from Part II of the Supplementary Report of the Land Planning Committee, 

 National Resources Board, pp. 35-48. 



5 Agricultural land not in farms is really larger than shown here because considerable 

 other land is grazed by domestic animals, and some other land is used for crops, particularly 

 in urban areas and Indian reservations. 



