WASHINGTON 
Data supplied by Robert G. Jeffrey 
Washington Department of Game 
Weather and habitat conditions 
The drying trend in the pothole areas, 
which began in some places in 1958, has 
continued through the current production 
period. The potholes in eastern Wash¬ 
ington often produce 60 percent or more 
of the State's duck crop, but in 1964 it is 
estimated that this production will amount 
to only 37 percent of the total. Typical of 
the pothole transects is the one in Douglas 
County, which in May 1959 covered 84 
potholes. In May 1964 there were only 
35 water bodies, and by the time of the 
June count these had declined to 23. 
The spring and early summer of 1964 
were not conducive to high duck produc¬ 
tion. In eastern Washington, the spring 
was cold and dry which greatly retarded 
nesting cover growth. In western Wash¬ 
ington it was cold and wet through the 
month of June. 
Breeding population indexes 
May transect counts in eastern Wash¬ 
ington showed the breeding pairs to have 
increased by 6 percent over 1963. Irri¬ 
gated areas had 20 percent more pairs, 
the northeastern highlands were up 10 
percent, and even the drying pothole 
country maintained its adult duck popula¬ 
tion (up 1 percent). 
Production indexes 
At this time it is estimated that duck 
production will be down 12 percent from 
1963 throughout the State (table B-ll). 
Brood production was down in all 
areas of the State with the exceptions of 
irrigation and the northeastern highlands. 
The calculated percentage of young in the 
fall population is 54, compared to 60 for 
last year. 
Dabbling ducks will be down 13 percent, 
while the diving duck portion of the index 
increased by 2 percent. Of the dabblers, 
mallards apparently fared the best, being 
5 percent below the 1964 production. 
The 1963 Canada goose production index 
for eastern Washington was 10,200 young 
plus adults. Goose production has declined 
13 percent, making the index 8,900 for 
1964. Much of the decline has been credited 
to dam construction and increased human 
use of the rivers. 
OREGON 
Data supplied by 
Oregon State Game Commission 
Weather and habitat conditions 
A heavy winter snowfall and heavy spring 
rains in southeastern Oregon restored wa¬ 
ter in many of the waterfowl production 
areas to nearly normal levels. Precipita¬ 
tion in central and northeastern Oregon, 
however, was again below normal, and the 
low production which normally takes place 
in these areas was further reduced. 
Production indexes 
Goose production remained high through¬ 
out the breeding range, with exceptionally 
good success in the Klamath Basin. A 
shift of breeding birds may have taken 
place from nearby Klamath Marsh, which 
is still suffering from drought. The num¬ 
ber of young recorded on established 
transects showed an increase of 27 percent 
from 1963. Owing to improved water con¬ 
ditions, duck production also increased 
substantially. Measurements on estab¬ 
lished transects indicate production to be 
15 percent higher than in 1963. (Table 
B-12.) 
Malheur Lake, which was dry through¬ 
out the drought period, now contains 
20, 000 acres of marsh and water with 
depths ranging to 3 feet. Production es¬ 
timates for 1964 (not included in the 
tables) are 34,200 ducklings, up 24 per¬ 
cent from the 1963 production of 27,495. 
Production of both ducks and geese on 
the Klamath Forest Refuge is down from 
1963 owing to low water levels and a late 
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