
32 
Nesting Season 
At the beginning of this year's survey every evidence pointed to an improved 
nesting season, except for the late arrival of the blue-winged teal. However, the 
rapid disappearance of water caused a continuing desertion of more and more areas 
by waterfowl and the resultant necessity for renesting. Lone females began to appear 
frequently by early June and by mid-June flocks of females were quite common in 
southern areas where water existed. The disruption of early nesting attempts was 
most noticeable in the sexual composition of waterfowl counted on transects through- 
‘out May and June. In early May, paired mallards and pintails were very common, 
Lone males increased in numbers and frequency of occurrence until about June 1. 
By this time, most of the temporary and intermediate water had disappeared and the 
water levels of permanent areas had receded seriously. Ducks left the waterless 
prairie transects and in some areas where water remained paired birds were in 
evidence again, indicating renesting attempts. But strangely enough, the build-up 
of the flocks of females continued, particularly in the Eastern Irrigation District, 
centering around Brooks. At first, it appeared that early nest desertions were being 
followed by a general renesting, but it soon became equally apparent that this was not 
occurring in sufficient degree to offset early failures, The rapid disappearance of 
male birds from the breeding locations by mid-June, coinciding with the appearance 
of many flocks of adult females, leads us to believe that too many of the adult males 
went into their moult at the same time that drought caused females to desert their 
nests. Asa result, instead of renesting, a great number of females never did renest 
for lack of available males. This fact was further borne out by our banding records. 
In mid-July, 30 percent of the pintails banded were adult females. Under normal 
conditions, female pintails would not moult with the males in large moulting concen- 
trations, but would congregate at a later date in smaller groups after their broods 
had been weaned. Thus, actual observations of the sexual composition of the water- 
fowl populations on our transects throughout May and June, plus the sexual composition 
of the adult moulting birds in July, gives us sufficient evidence that the pintail, which 
comprises the most numerous of breeding Alberta game ducks, suffered a serious 
set-back during the current season in this Province. For the first time since these 
surveys began, the number of pintail broods observed has dropped to second place. 
Considering the broods of mallards and pintails together as 100 percent see Table 4. 
Table 4, -- Mallard-Pintail Brood Relationships - 1948-1950 




Species 1948 1949 1950 
Mallard 24% 43% 69% 
Pintail 76% 57% 31% 
TOTALS 100% 100% 100% 
In order to give a true picture of the broods of these two species in 
relation to all broods of all species observed, we found that in 1948, mallards and 
pintails made up 67 percent of all broods seen, in 1949 - 71 percent, and in 1950 - 
61 percent. 
Though a late hatch was indicated by the continued appearance of broods of 
downy young pintails in late July, this undoubtedly represents the broods of those 
birds that successfully renested, The influence of this late hatch, though important, 
cannot compensate for the large numbers of females who did not renest. 
The earliest broods seen this year appeared on June 3. At the time of the 
observation the broods were about one week of age, making the hatching date approx- 
imately May 27. Broods of the following species were first observed on the dates 
indicated below. 
