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1. Water conditions were generally good in Wisconsin during 1950. Assuming 
that conditions encountered during the spring breeding grounds census constituted 100 
percent of normality, water area decreased by about 50 percent in the northern portion 
of the State where transects were re-run, and to 58 percent of normal in central 
Wisconsin as the season progressed and as would be anticipated in an average year. 
Contrarily, the amount of water acreage in the southern portion of the State was 
brought up to normality or 100 percent by June rains and subsequent heavy rains in 
July temporarily increased water area acreages from 50 to 400 percent above normal. 
2. The effects of heavy rains, windstorms, and subnormal temperatures an - 
waterfowl production were undetermined. No evidence was available to prove that 
waterfowl brood losses occurred in the wild as a result of these climatological factors; 
in fact, the distribution of broods through all three age classes in comparable sized 
broods suggests that these young ducks survived adverse weather conditions readily. 
However, itis entirely possible that these climatological factors contributed heavily 
to breeding and nesting failures in the wild. 
3. Minimum known waterfowl production in Wisconsin during 1950 constituted 
1.34 young per adult pair on the breeding grounds during the peaks of the territorial 
periods for the various species of ducks. An upward revision of this ratio is unquestion- 
ably warranted since we do not know how many broods we fail to see by the methods 
employed. 
4. A total of 185 breeding pairs tabulated on waterfowl production survey area 
censused produced a known total of 49 broods. An examination of data on territorial 
behavior for the various species suggests strongly that over 50 percent of the female 
ducks failed to bring off broods. 
5. On the basis of 59 entire or complete brood counts made during the summer 
of 1950, duck broods averaged 6.1 young per brood. No valid difference in brood sizes 
existed between the various age classes. On the basis of 31 entire or complete brood 
counts on coots, an average of 3.3 young per brood was found. 
6. The great majority of all broods were not seen until well into July. Few 
young birds were flying by July 22 and over half of all broods seen during July were of 
downy young (Class 1) or intermediate (Class 11) age. 
7, It appears probable that net waterfowl production during 1950 in Wisconsin 
was lower than in 1949 solely on the evidence that the number of adult female birds seen 
flocked with summering males during June and early July was higher than has been 
observed in the past three years. Little other comparative data is available to sub- 
stantiate this view other than spring breeding grounds census data which showed a 
definite decline in the number of breeding ducks. 
8. A preliminary summary of goose nesting records in Wisconsin yielded 
only a handful of unconfirmed breeding records. It appears breeding records on 
Canada geese in Wisconsin are confined almost entirely to the Necedah National Wild- 
life Refuge, the Suamico Game Sanctuary near Green Bay, and to remnants of a few 
captive flocks in southeastern Wisconsin (free flying geese breeding in the wild). 
Waterfowl Trapping and Banding Operations 
a a eee 
Canada goose - Suamico Sanctuary - 12 
Canada goose - hand reared - Horicon Marsh - 17 
Mallards - hand reared - Horicon Marsh and Mississippi River at LaCrosse - 2, 526 
Wild. ducks - Horicon Marsh - 833 
