concentrations are present in various es- 
tuarine river marshes scattered through 
the region. In fall, fairly large numbers 
occur in the marshes and adjoining impound- 
ments of the coastal section. 
Biogeographic Sections 
The average distribution of Pintails during 
the January inventories of 1955-58 is shown 
in table 68. Approximately 97% of the winter- 
ing population occurred in the sections along 
the eastern shore of Chesapeake Bay; about 
2% was in the sections along the western 
shore (including Patuxent River and Potomac 
sections); and 1% was in the Coastal section. 
More than three-fourths of the birds were 
concentrated in the Chester River, Black- 
water-Nanticoke, and Lower Eastern Shore 
sections. 
Seasonal changes in numbers during 1958- 
59 are shown in table 69. There usually is 
an influx of early migrants during late August 
and September. These birds often concentrate 
on the Susquehanna Flats, and fairly large 
numbers occasionally remain there through the 
early part of October. There may be from 
500 to 10,000 birds on the flats during this 
period. The Chester River section was amajor 
Pintail area during all five surveys. Secondary 
areas included the Lower Eastern Shore and 
Coastal sections. The principal concentrations 
of Pintails within these sections were in the 
central Chester River and lower Chester 
River areas; in the Smith Island and Tar Bay 
areas; and in the lower Assateague Island 
area. Large populations were in the upper 
Chester: River area during the March survey. 
Other local concentrations of considerable 
size were in the central and lower Choptank 
areas of the Choptank River section; in the 
upper Blackwater area of the Blackwater-Nan- 
ticoke section; in the upper Eastern Bay area 
of the Eastern Bay section; in the bay shore 
and Sassafras River areas of the Upper 
Eastern Shore section; in the Port Tobacco 
area of the Central Potomac section; and in 
the Patuxent marsh area of the Patuxent River 
section, 
Food Habits 
The gullet and gizzard food contents of 32 
Pintails were examined (tables 70-73), Two 
birds were collected in addition to those shown 
in the tables. One was shot in the coastal 
salt marshes during late fall, and the other 
was collected in the Patuxent River bottom- 
lands in November. 
Pintails from the interior impoundments ad- 
joining agricultural fields (table 70) had fed 
chiefly on corn and on seeds of various weeds 
characteristic of corn fields, including large- 
seed smartweed, crabgrass, fall panicum, 
41 
foxtail grass, and ladysthumb, The Pintails 
collected along the margins of brackish es- 
tuaries (table 71) had fed on seeds of German 
millet; seeds of various field weeds and 
aquatic plants; leaves, stems and rootstalks 
of submerged aquatic plants; corn; and various 
invertebrates, The principal foods of Pintails 
from the brackish estuarine bay marsh (table 
72) were the seeds of widgeongrass, Olney 
three-square, twigrush, cordgrass, and crab- 
grass; the leaves, stems and rootstalks of 
submerged aquatic plants, particularly widg- 
eongrass; various invertebrate animals; and 
corn. The Pintails from estuarine river 
marshes (table 73) had fed primarily on the 
seeds of dotted smartweed; they also had 
eaten seeds of halberdleaf tearthumb, com- 
mon three-square, and many other species, 
The one bird collected in the coastal salt 
marshes had fed on corn and on the seeds 
of saltmarsh cordgrass and widgeongrass. The 
Pintail taken on the wooded bottomlands of the 
Patuxent River, an unusual habitat for this 
species, had fed on the seeds of common bur- 
reed, and onvarious smallmollusks (Physa sp., 
Gyraulus sp., and Pisidium atlanticum). 
Local Distribution of Hunting Kill 
Information concerning the local distribution 
of the hunting kill of Pintails within the Upper 
Chesapeake region was obtained through an 
analysis of the distribution of 81 weighted 
recoveries of birds banded outside of Mary- 
land and Virginia (table 74). These recoveries 
were reported during the years 1938, 1939, 
1940, 1942, 1950, 1951, 1953, 1955, 1956, and 
1957. The number per year ranged from 4 in 
1938 and 1950 to 13 in 1956, 
The Lower Eastern Shore section was the 
principal area of Pintail kill in the Upper 
Chesapeake region. Other areas where the 
kill was fairly high included the Chester River, 
Coastal, and Upper Eastern Shore sections, 
The greatest local concentration of kill (15%) 
apparently occurred in lower Tangier Sound 
(Fox Island area) of the Lower Eastern Shore 
section. Other local areas where there were 
large kills were the lower Chester River (11%), 
the Taylors Island-Tar Bay area (9%), and the 
South Marsh Island-Smith Island area (9%). 
The kill of Pintails as related to their local 
populations was proportionally high in the 
Lower Eastern Shore section and proportion- 
ally low in the Chester River section. Kill-data 
arranged by months showed that 36% of the kill 
was in November, 48% in December, and 16% in 
January. 
Harvest Areas of Birds Banded in the Upper 
Chesapeake Region 
Data concerning harvest areas of Pintails 
banded in the Kent Island, Blackwater River, 
