
NORTH DAKOTA 
Weather and Water Conditions 
North Dakota in 1957 was drier than usual due to a lack of 
spring sun-off and a dry month of May. The lack of numerous surface 
water areas may account for the decrease in breeding pairs. The month 
of Tune, was cold and wet. The rains of June were spotty, however, and 
many of the pothoies dry in May remained dry through June and July. The 
Red River Valley (strata east) contained more water areas in July than it 
did in May but this was exceptional. 
The index to number of individual ponds within the areas 
sampled is as follows: 
Table 1 - North Dakota Water Index = 1957 


Strata : State Ponds Per 
Pexiod - West Central East Total Sq. Mile 
May Ponds 141,520 253,536 36,576 431,632 6.1 
July Ponds 71,720 100,379 26,656 198,755 2.8 

The water index for the State in the spring of 1956 was 
445,189 areas. On this basis, the number of water areas decreased only 
three percent between 1956 and 1957. However, the 1957 survey was 
conducted by a different crew and there may be question as to the com- 
parability of the data. 
Breeding Population Index 
The 1957 breeding population index for North Dakota is 
presented in Table 2. Comparisons of these indices with those of past 
years are presented in Table 3. 
