12 
Pacific Rice Courier 
careful investigation of actual damage 
in different localities was undertaken 
and the actual damage estimated. 
Furthermore, the habits of ducks and 
other birds in their relation to rice 
were studied. A large amount of 
territory both on the west side and the 
east side of the Sacramento River in 
Colusa, Glenn, Sutter and Butte 
Counties was investigated. 
Fig. 2. Open patch of water and 
damaged rice. Fallaman Ranch y near 
Gridley, Cal. 
RESULTS OF INVESTIGATION 
Interviews : In order that the point 
of view of the rice grower himself 
might he well understood, a large 
number of growers (about fifty) were 
interviewed. Furthermore, towns- 
people merely interested in the prob- 
lem were also interviewed. The farm 
adviser of Glenn County did not ap- 
pear to be greatly disturbed over the 
agitation. He simply suggested that 
some means of attacking- the problem 
should be worked out. The horticul- 
tural commissioner appeared to be 
more interested in being* able to shoot 
ducks than in the damage to crops. 
Mr. Ernest Behr, Secretary of the 
Pacific Rice Growers Association, min- 
imized the damage done and pointed 
out that the dead duck does not pro- 
tect any better than the scared duck. 
In a letter to Hon. Frank Newbert, 
President of the Fish and G ame Com- 
mission, dated August 8, 1919, Mr. 
Behr said : 
“It has come to my attention that 
various persons, some of whom in 
the past have been pecuniarily inter- 
ested in the killing and marketing of 
wildfowl, are now seeking to have the 
open season for taking such wildfowl 
extended by earlier opening, under 
the plea of saving the rice fields from 
destruction. Such a plea is wholly 
specious, having neither merit nor 
foundation in fact. I speak from 
the standpoint of a rice-grower. 
I do not desire to be understood as 
saying the wild ducks do not damage 
the rice in some instances, both in 
the stock and in the shock. I do say, 
however, that the extension of the 
open season is not the proper solu- 
tion of the problem. 
Once the restrictions under the 
protective season are removed, the 
rice grower will face a far graver 
menace — a more serious loss — than 
that caused by the presence of wild- 
fowl in their fields. Trespassing 
hunters will do more damage in 
trampling and shelling out the ripened 
and ripening* rice than the ducks will 
do. Likewise, it will cost more money 
to patrol the rice fields against the 
invasions of trespassing hunters than 
is represented by the amount of dam- 
age the ducks will do. 
The proponents of an earlier be- 
ginning of the open season assert that 
as the law of trespass obtains at all 
times, all a grower lias to do is to 
post notices warning hunters away and 
they will not enter his field. This is 
not true, as many growers can testify. 
But even granting that the law of 
trespass is observed and respected, the 
evil is not cured. There is nothing to 
prevent, hunters shooting from the 
highways and sending their dogs into 
the fields to retrieve the fallen game. 
A dog scurrying through a field of 
ripened rice will trample and shell as 
much rice as will a man similarlv 
•• 
engaged. 
in this connection it is my opinion 
and belief that those who shoot ducks 
and permit them to lie where they 
fall, without making use of them as 
food, are in these days when conser- 
vation of all resources means success 
or failure in the prosecution of the 
war, not good citizens. 
In fine, thei*e is really nothing to 
be said in advocacy of extending the 
open season on wild fowl as a means 
of ridding the rice fields of the ducks. 
In fact, employment of the shotgun 
as a means to this end is a failure. 
It is a very costly practice and fails 
utterly to keep the birds away. 
In this I speak from experience. 
On our holdings we have employed 
men, furnishing shotguns and am- 
munition, to scare the ducks away, 
it cost lots of money and gave no 
appreciable results. Last year we 
tried bombs, with pronounced success, 
and this year will use them entirely. 
It cost far less money and gave most 
excellent results. Out of this ex- 
perience and that of other growers 
who have used bombs, 1 am prepared 
to say that with their adoption, the 
problem of keeping wildfowl out of 
the rice fields is solved. 
I believe it would be most unwise 
to make a change in the game laws 
looking to an earlier open season. I 
recall that last vear when it was re- 
ported very generally over the coast 
that, the California game laws would 
be abrogated in the mistaken belief 
that the rice growers would be bene- 
fited thereby, hundreds of hunters 
rushed to the rice belt of the Sacra- 
mento Valley. They came from Van- 
couver on the north and from San 
Diego on the south. They came by 
train and by automobile, and auto- 
mobile parties camped at the road- 
side awaiting word of the hoped-for 
remission of the game laws, were a 
common sight. 
Fortunately, no change was made 
and the hunters returned to their re- 
spective localities — a most fortunate 
circumstance for the growers of rice/’ 
The concensus of opinion of the 
growers interviewed was that the 
grower should lawfully be allowed to 
protect his crops. 
Practically all were opposed to al- 
lowing indiscriminate hunting as the 
hunters and dogs would cause much 
more damage than the ducks. It was 
noticeable that exaggerated statements 
as to damage done invariably came 
from townspeople who were inter- 
ested in obtaining ducks to eat be- 
fore the season opened. 
Fig. 3. Rice damaged by ducks. Note 
heads stripped of kernels. Ranch of 
Bismarck Harden , near Maxwell , 
C o l us a C o u n t y, C a l. 
DAMAGE NOT WIDESPREAD 
As evidence that damage is not 
widespread, but limited to certain 
areas, we offer the following quota- 
tions from letters: 
“Wild ducks do absolutely no harm 
at any time, but blackbirds are verv 
»• 
destructive and a menace to the crow- 
ing rice. (B. P. English, Gridley, Cal.) 
“So far as I have observed they 
have never done any particular dam- 
age— in fact I know of none. (J. 
F. Garrette, President Biggs, Rice and 
Land Company, Biggs, Cal.) 
