in table 122. Greatest wintering concentrations 
were in the Central Western Shore and Pa- 
tuxent River sections; nearly one-half of the 
total population was in these two areas. Ap- 
proximately 27% of the scaup were in the 
various eastern shore sections extending from 
the Chester River to Pocomoke Sound; 11% 
were in the coastal area; 9% were in the 
Potomac River sections; and only 5% in the 
north Chesapeake area (Upper Western Shore, 
Susquehanna Flats, and Upper Eastern Shore 
sections), This distribution is quite different 
from that of most other waterfowl in the region 
in that a much larger proportion of the birds 
are below the Patapsco River in the various 
western shore sections (including Patuxent 
and Potomac River sections), 
Seasonal changes in numbers are shown 
in table 123. The early migrant populations in 
November were largely concentrated in the 
Susquehanna Flats, Upper Western Shore, 
and Chester River sections. In December, the 
late migrant populations were more widely 
dispersed throughout the Upper Chesapeake 
region. Over half of the wintering population 
in January was concentrated in the Lower 
Western Shore section; most of the remainder 
was in the Coastal, Eastern Bay, Chester 
River, and Lower Potomac sections. During 
the early spring migration in March, the 
greatest numbers were in the Susquehanna 
Flats, Central Western Shore, Choptank River, 
Lower Potomac, Blackwater-Nanticoke, and 
Lower Eastern Shore sections. 
Food Habits 
The gullet and gizzard food contents of 63 
Lesser Scaup were examined, Data for 61 of 
these are shown in tables 124-128. In addition, 
two were taken on the coastal bays of Wor- 
cester County in December. 
A variety of small mollusks, representing 
both gastropod and pelecypod types, were the 
principal foods of Lesser Scaup in the Upper 
Chesapeake region. Locally, the seeds, leaves, 
stems, and rootstaiks of submerged plants, 
and bait, chiefly corn, also were consumed in 
considerable quantities. In the fresh estuarine 
bays (table 124), certain mollusks, including 
the gastropod Ozytrema virginica, and the leaves, 
stems, and rootstalks of a variety of sub- 
merged plants were the important foods. Inthe 
clear, brackish estuarine bays of the Choptank 
River, Eastern Bay, and Chester River (table 
125), the predominant foods were various 
mollusks, including the little surf clam 
(Mulinia lateralis), the bent mussel (Brachidontes 
tecurvus), and the gem shell (Gemma gemma); grain 
bait, chiefly corn; and the seeds, leaves, stems, 
and rootstalks of submerged plants, chiefly 
widgeongrass and claspingleaf pondweed. The 
more important foods in the turbid brackish 
estuarine bays of Fishing Bay and the Nanticoke 
River (table 126) were small gastropod 
54 
mollusks, including Acteocina canaliculata and 
Odo stomia impressa; small pelecypod mollusks, 
including the little surf clam (Mulinia lateralis), 
Morton's cockle (Laevicardium mortoni), Baltic 
macoma (Macoma balthica), and bent mussel 
(Brachidonies recurvus); and the isopod crustacean 
Chiridotea coeca. In the salt estuarine bays of 
Dorchester County (table 127), the Lesser 
Scaup had fed chiefly on small mollusks, in- 
cluding the gastropod Bittium sp.; on baitcorn; 
and on the leaves, stems, and rootstalks of 
eelgrass. The two birds collected in the 
coastal salt bays of Worcester County had 
fed on seeds of twigrush; seeds, leaves, and 
stems of sago pondweed and widgeongrass; and 
on bait corn. The principal foods taken by the 
birds shot on interior impoundments (table 
128) were dragonfly nymphs (Libelluloidea), 
snout beetles (Curculionidae), and the seeds 
of common burreed, 
Local Distribution of Hunting Kill 
Information concerning local distribution of 
the hunting kill of Lesser Scaup within the 
Upper Chesapeake region was obtained through 
an analysis of the distribution of 180 weighted 
recoveries of birds banded outside Maryland 
and Virginia (table 129), These recoveries 
were reported during the years 1955-57, The 
number per year ranged from 24 in 1955 to 
99 in 1956. 
The kill of Lesser Scaup is fairly well 
distributed over the Upper Chesapeake region, 
with the greatest concentration in the Chester 
River section. Approximately 27% of the total 
kill occurs in the central eastern shore area 
(Chester River, Eastern Bay, and Choptank 
River sections); 23% in the Potomac River 
sections; 20% in the north Chesapeake area 
(Upper Western Shore, Susquehanna Flats, 
and Upper Eastern Shore sections); 14% in 
the Central Western Shore - Patuxent River 
area; 12% in southern portions of the eastern 
shore area (Blackwater-Nanticoke and Lower 
Eastern Shore sections); and 4% in the coastal 
area. The distribution of the kill by major 
habitat types was: brackish estuarine bays - 
53%; fresh and slightly brackish estuarine 
bays - 32%; salt estuarine bays - 11%; and 
coastal bays - 4%. The greatest local con- 
centrations of kill were along the Baltimore 
County "necks" in the Upper Western Shore 
section, in the St. Clement-Breton Bay area 
of the Lower Potomac section, and in the 
Chestertown area of the Chester River section. 
Kill data arranged by months showed that 
17% of the kill was in November, 59% in 
December, and 24% in January. 
Harvest Areas of Birds Banded in Upper 
Chesapeake Region 
Data concerning harvest areas of Lesser 
Scaup banded in the Chester River, Eastern 
