A systematic method of determining trends in the wood¬ 
cock harvest was recently attempted using data from the wing- 
collection survey. A hunter-success index was obtained by 
determining the average number of wings returned by the same 
cooperators in 1963 and 1964. The analysis indicated that 
success was generally higher in the East but lower in the 
Lake States during the 1964 season. Despite variations in 
shooting success among States each year, there was apparently 
no change in the daily woodcock bag because, continentwide, 
the average number of wings per envelope remained the same 
when weighed by available kill estimates. The total number 
of wings submitted by these same cooperators, however, increased 
more than 15 percent in 1964. This suggests that the larger kill 
resulted from more trips afield during the 1964 season (table 6). 
THE WOODCOCK BANDING PROGRAM 
The banding of migratory game birds shortly before the 
hunting season provides valuable information for management. 
Recoveries from such woodcock bandings provide information 
on kill rates, annual mortality, the effects of hunting reg¬ 
ulations on recovery rates, the extent to which different 
age and sex classes differ in their vulnerability to hunting, 
and the distribution of hunting mortality. The winter band¬ 
ing of woodcock provides information on annual mortality and 
sex differences in shooting pressure and survival. In com¬ 
bination, these two banding programs yield information on the 
time of year mortality occurs and thus suggests the importance 
of hunting as a mortality factor. As with waterfowl, summer 
banding data should reveal the relation between shooting pres¬ 
sure (as reflected by band recovery rates) and annual mortality. 
This will indicate whether hunting does, in fact, affect total 
mortality or simply replaces nonhunting mortality. Nigh priority 
should be given the establishment of banding programs that sam¬ 
ple summer and winter woodcock populations in a representative 
manner. Listed below are the present woodcock banding centers 
with a resume of their recent activities. 
Maine At Moosehorn National Wildlife Refuge the summer 
banding program, begun experimentally in 1962, was continued. 
Under the direction of Refuge Biologist Eldon R. Clark, the 
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