18 
WING COLLECTION SURVEY 
There was no mail collection of duck 
wings from hunters in the Central Flyway 
during either the 1959-60 or 1960-61 hunt- 
ing season. Supplemental collections of 
mallard wings by Bureau and State person- 
nel were not extensive enough in 1959-60 
WINTER 
FACTORS AFFECTING SURVEY 
Weather conditions during the survey 
were such that visibility was excellent and 
aerial coverage was completed throughout 
most sections of the Flyway in a minimum 
of time, Water areas in the northern part 
of the Flyway were generally ice-covered 
and waterfowl were largely confined to 
streams and rivers. Rain, fog, frost, and 
overcast skies delayed conduct of the sur- 
vey in western Montana and along the upper 
and lower coastal areas of Texas. Fog 
and frost persisted until midafternoon of 
January 4 and 5 west of the Continental 
Divide in Montana. A 2-day heavy over- 
cast, fog, and rain delayed the survey along 
the lower Texas coast. Weather conditions 
were adverse in the upper Texas coastal 
areas as rain, fog, and overcast skies 
seriously hampered aerial coverage. A 
partial coverage of this important water- 
fowl wintering area was made January 4, 
9, 10, and 14. Ground observations were 
impeded by above-normal precipitation, 
which made travel off the main highway 
impossible and caused the wintering birds 
to scatter over thousands of acres of flooded 
rice fields and pasture lands. These con- 
ditions prevented continuous conduct of 
the survey and may have resulted in some 
groups of birds being tabulated several 
times or being omitted from the survey 
entirely. 
POPULATION TRENDS 
Based on data from comparable areas 
within the Flyway, there was little change 
in the total number of ducks. Among the 
important species, however, was a further 
decrease in the mallard population (-14 
_ seasons. 
to permit reliable comparisons between 
The results of supplemental 
mallard wing collections in the Central 
Flyway are summarized in table B-2 
(p. 55). 
SURVEY 
percent). The 1961 wintering population of 
this species is now 60 percent below the 
peak population recorded in the Flyway in 
1958. A large increase in the number of 
redhead was recorded as compared with 
last year (231,600 to 614,400, or +165 
percent). The problem ofaccuracy of winter 
survey redhead population indexes was 
discussed at length in the Waterfowl Status 
Reports for 1959 and 1960. For the past 4 
years in the Central Flyway, redhead have 
numbered approximately 510,000; 876,000; 
232,000; and 614,000. It is improbable that 
these figures represent a population change 
from one year to the next and it is difficult 
to determine a trend, except in a very 
general way. As mentioned in the water- 
fowl status report for 1960, the difficulty 
seems to be one of locating the redheads 
during the survey period. For redhead and 
other species whose habits are such that 
they often rest in large rafts on open water 
far from land, it is unlikely that the winter 
survey data are of much use as indicators 
of population status. However, for most 
species it is believed that the data are 
sufficiently accurate to reveal general 
trends in population levels. 
The recorded goose population declined 
somewhat (-8 percent). The number of 
Canada geese remained about the same; 
snow and blue geese decreased 7 and 18 
percent, respectively; and white-fronted 
geese decreased 51 percent, to a recorded 
population of only 14,779 birds. In view of 
the estimated kill of the white-front in the 
Central Flyway, both in Canada and in the 
United States, it seems definite that only a 
fraction of the total population present on 
the wintering grounds is located and re- 
corded. However, the recorded wintering 
population of white-fronted geese in the 
