The good water conditions scaled off rapidly 
as the western provincial boundary was ap- 
proached, In western Manitoba water areas 
were shallow and were not being sustained 
by rainfall, 
Crop seeding was considerably delayed by 
cold, wet May weather, There was a notice- 
able lack of spring burning and the over- 
water nesting cover apparently escaped de- 
struction this spring in contrastto 1962. Such 
crops that had germinated were blackened 
in the Brandon-Neepewa area by frost on 
May 20 and considerable reseeding had to be 
done. In general, soil moisture favored an 
excellent crop of small grains. 
The clearing of the aspen parklands con- 
tinues at a rapid pace, Viewed from the air 
the contrast in amount of wooded area present 
in 1956 with that visible now in eastern 
Manitoba is astounding. Entire sections once 
practically covered by aspen are now open 
fields dotted by small wetlands. 
Aspen and willow leaves developed rapidly 
after mid-May as did the marsh vegetation 
in the shallow ponds. It was notthought, that 
visibility from the air was seriously hamp- 
ered as a result, 
Habitat conditions for waterfowl in southern 
Manitoba during July were improved over 
those of 1962 and 1961 and approach those 
of 1960, July pond numbers were still down 
a third from the 10-year average for the area 
(table D-5, p. 107). The May 1963 report 
indicated that many southern Manitoba ponds 
were shallow and would dry up without ad- 
ditional rain. In general, the summer rain- 
fall has been sufficient to maintain and in- 
crease water levels in many such ponds and 
brood water was available over most of the 
survey area. 
Pond vegetation was heavy during July as 
it was in July 1962 and hindered observations 
by the aerial crew, 
The 1963 July pond index for strata Aand B 
was 39 percent greater than the index for 
July 1962. But again, the pond index remains 
32 percent below the 10-year average for 
southern Manitoba. Water conditions in 
stratum A in 1963 was better than those of 
1962 or 1961 and it is necessary to go back 
to 1957 for a year with substantially better 
July water than 1963. 
Breeding Population Indexes 
Table E-28, p.126 compares the waterfowl 
breeding population indexes for the years 
42 
1955 through 1963 in southern Manitoba, 
Table E-29, p. 127, presents the breeding 
populaton by species, by strata; and com- 
pares the 1963 population with that of 1962 
and the average population found during the 
period 1953-1962. 
The breeding duck population in southern 
Manitoba in 1963 is 34 percent greater than 
that found in 1962, Dabbling ducks were up 
43 percent and divers, 16 percent. The 1963 
coot population is 60 percent greater than 
1962. These are substantial increases over 
the low population levels of 1962. Butto view 
these gains in the proper perspective, the 
1963 index needs to be measured against the 
more normal or average conditions of the 
past 10 years, 
The 1963 breeding duck population in 
southern Manitoba is still 25 percent below 
the average of the past 10 years. Both 
diving duck and coot populations are about 
average but the important dabbling duck 
breeding population is still 32 percent lower 
than the average for the last 10 years. 
Redhead breeders increased markedly 
(150%) over 1962 and 1963 levels were 76 
percent higher than the average redhead 
breeding population found in the 1953-1962 
period. Canvasback are up 33 percent over 
1962 and the current population is equal to 
the average found between 1953 and 1962. 
As a final comparison it is noted that in 
only 2 years (1953 and 1962) of the last 10 
years were the breeding population indexes 
lower than this spring. In southern Manitoba 
1962 was the worst year on record and it 
need be remembered that the 1963 gains are 
measured against the very low indexes of 
last year. 
Despite the increased number of breeders, 
a substantial part of the available habitat 
in southern Manitoba remained unused by 
breeding waterfowl in 1963. It does not ap- 
pear that this gap can be explained solely 
by the increased number of water areas 
recorded in 1963, 
The ratio of lone drakes to total drakes 
observed is considered an indicator of the 
progress and intensity of the nesting effort. 
The higher the percentage of the lone drakes 
recorded the earlier the nesting season is 
assumed to be. The 1963 lone drake figure 
of 80 percent is a considerable improvement 
over the 1962 figure of 62 percent (lowest 
on record) and is about average for the last 
10 years (table E-30, p.127). 
Other evidence that 1963 was an early 
nesting season was provided by ground crews 
