

oJ 



United Statea Department of the Interior 

 Bureau of Biologioal Survey 



Wildlife Leaflet BS-166 



Washington, D. C, 



34; 





June 1940 



THE STATUS OF MIGRATORY GAME BIRDS: 1939-40 



Prepared In the Section of Distribution and Migration of Birds 

 Division of Wildlife Researoh 



Contents 



Page 



Introduction.. . «... ••• 1 



Part It Migratory waterfowl.... 2 



Spring migration. •••••••••••• 2 



Breeding-ground surveys 2 



Pacific Flyway 2 



Central and Mississippi 



Flyways ».. 4 



Atlantic Flyway 6 



Nesting conditions in the 



United States 7 



Fall migration............... 8 



Wintering-ground surveys...,. 9 



Studies in Mexico,. $ 



Studies in the United 



States 12 



January inventory* •••••....•. 15 



Page 

 Part 1* Migratory Waterfowl — 

 Continued. 



Starvation of ducks •••• 13 



Cripples............ 15 



Natural enemies. I 7 



Part 2 j Other migratory game 



birds 17 



Woodoook,. I 7 



Mourning dove,,* ...... . I 9 



Other species •• 20 



Coot 20 



8onu 20 



Wilson's snipe 20 



White-Cringed dove 20 



Band-tailed pigeon 21 



Conclusion • 22 



INTRODUCTION 



The experience of the past few years conclusively demonstrates that 

 under a program of sound management, the United States, Canada, and Mex- 

 ico can continue to enjoy reasonable sport with migratory game birds and 

 at the same time perpetuate them. The rehabilitation of the ducks and 

 geese, while by no means complete, has progressed so far that the suc- 

 cess already attained should stand for all time as a monument to practi- 

 cal conservation. Some of the highly artificial methods of shooting, 

 which formerly resulted in large kills by a limited few, probably must 

 continue to be prohibited, but this action will have the desirable re- 

 sult of spreading shooting privileges more equitably among the whole 

 hunting fraternity* 



