Table 2. --Ths Psreant of Occunaney of pater Areas Oceuniad by Wate. fowl 
in the State of Fontana, spring 1949 
Water Ares Classifications 

Permanent Intarm*diate Tempore Total 
Notrthsrno Prairie 
Glaciated Region 
Oraat Falls 
Pisdwnont Region 
Souther Unglaciated 
Prairies Rerion 52* 
Bestern Mountainous 
Region 
oe 
ee 
ra) 
43 
* Percent occupancy for the southern unglaciated pralris regicn wes 
determined from serial coverages. Consequently, only total number 
af water arsas cauld be determined, 
A 100 percent asrial coverages of 2,436 square miles was mads in order ta 
determines the number of square miles usr water areas in a section of thse northern 
placiated prairia region [Sse Figures 1). This work was done during an antslops 
eonsus of the samc arta, An average of one water area for seach 8.95 squars 
miles was found, In refions of intensive wheat farming, the frequency of water 
areas was eatromesly low. Ons such transect sampled 276 squares miles with no 
water areas present. It 18 difficult te say what would happen during wet years, 
but from the observations of this ysar, the farm has certainly taken tha placs 
ef the marsn in many arsaa, 
A roadsids transsat mode in the Sheridan County terminal morsings arse on 
Way 26, yielded a totel of 12 permanent and 627 intermediate clasa water sraas, 
This transect was repeated on Auguet 24, and water romainsd in only ths 12 par- 
manent and 3 intermediate water arsas. This indicates that about 80 percent of 
the water arsas of this particular region became dry by late August in 1949. 
The mallard was the most stundant bresding duck in the prairies region, 
with the ¢xeception of the small terminal moraine area in Sheridan County 
(Table 3). The Sheridan County terminal moraine ares showed # predominance of 
pintails, followed closely by mallards. The mountsinous arees showed a situa- 
tion quits different. In the Flathead Valley, redhead was the most numerous 
bresding duck, while in the Blackfoot Valley the most numerous duck was sacaup 
(Table 3). However, the mallard was again high on the list of breeding ducks 
in the mountainous arses, occupying a numerical sstond placa in tha Flathead 
Valley and third in the Blackfoot Vallay, 
Witn the exceptions noted, the principal Montana bresding ducks, in tha 
order of importance, were as follows: Mallard, pintail, blue-winged tal, 
Shoysler, baldpats, and padwall [Table 4). 
The nesting s¢4s0n was very dry. The succsss of the nesting stsson, however, 
may have been sugmentsd by the earliness of the very drought that would normally 
have killed many birds, At tha time the birds were choosing neat sites, only ths 
Mors permancnt water wes available, Consequently, although there may have besn 
less than the usuel number of osstinoeg birds in Montana, the survival ratio was 
probably inmprorsd, 
Le hi 
