GEE COMMISSI011 BREHM

GEE COMMISSI011 BREHM

Vol. III PORTLAND, OREGON. JULY, 1948 No. 7

Battle for the RogueRiver Is Underway

All interests in the Rogue River wererepresented when the Bureau of Recla-mation held a hearing on the Rogue RiverProject in Medford, Oregon, on June 8and 9, 1948. Dr. H. H. Burrows, Consult-ant for the Bureau of Reclamation, pre-sided over the sessions. F. C. Hart of theBureau of Reclamation presented the en-gineering phases of Plans A and B aspresented in the Bureau of Reclamationreport issued under date of March 5, 1948.

Irrigation, flood control and businessrepresentatives were practically unani-mously in favor of Plan A as presentedin Reclamation's report. National andstate wildlife and fishery interests werepractically unanimously opposed to eitherPlans A or B as presently drawn up.

Kenneth Denman, former member ofthe Game Commission, served as chair-man for defense of the fishery and wild-life and introduced each of the speakerstalking for wildlife protection. His pro-gram was well-arranged and it was evi-dent that the weight of the testimonywas on the side of full protection for themain Rogue.

(Continued on Page 8)

t9 ilizentaatete"d Oft Sitemedotept:1By IRA N. GABRIELSON, President, Wildlife Management Institute*

It is always a privilege to appear before a convention representing theorganized conservation interests of a state. It is particularly pleasant tobe able to talk straight from the shoulder about the basic ideas that makeit possible to retain at least a portion of the hunting and fishing recreationthat we have enjoyed in the past. The discussions that will take place hereare indicative of the progress or lack of it in developing public appreciationfor and support of fundamental principles.

Sportsmen as individuals and groupshave been responsible for most of theprogress in improving wildlife adminis-tration. Wherever improvement has ap-peared, particularly in the legislationwhich affects wildlife problems, somefar-sighted sportsmen or group of sports-men have usually been responsible for itsinitiation and inauguration. Sportsmen'sgroups attacking problems with intelli-gence have often provided the real im-petus for forward steps. On the otherhand, sportsmen's groups have been andstill are responsible for much waste ofthe funds and effort available for bettermanagement of these resources.

It is not my purpose to use your timetalking about the good things that sports-

Main Rogue river in region of proposed Copper Canyon dam site. If constructed, dam would spellcomplete doom of salmon and steelhead runs in the Rogue basin.

men have done in the past. Most of youknow what they are. I would much pre-fer to discuss methods of improving ex-isting conditions and of meeting themore complicated problems that willcome in the future.

Decrease in Game HabitatAs the years pass, certain basic condi-

tions that add to the difficulties of wild-life management become increasinglyobvious. I am, personally, more and moreconscious of these basic trends and theireffect upon the supply of fish and game.The fact that there is an increasinghuman population in North America isof fundamental importance. An increas-ing human population inevitably meansa greater and greater demand upon theland. It means not only more intensiveagriculture on farm lands but a con-stantly increasing human use of land forall purposes. To the extent that such useexcludes or reduces wildlife populations,it means a smaller habitat capable ofproducing the annual game crop. Everytime a highway is paved, or a building oc-cupies new land, some potential habitat istaken out of production. During the pastdecade high prices and war demands forfood have, by intensifying agriculturalpractices, caused the destruction of manythousands of acres of habitat that onceproduced wildlife even on the best agri-cultural lands. There are areas where lessintensive utilization is made of land, us-ually because it can no longer be farmedprofitably. Much land in New Englandand other eastern states is going backinto brush and eventually into forest.These are lands that were once culti-vated as intensively as possible with ex-isting climatic and soil conditions. Nowit is no longer profitable to work them

(Continued on Page 5)*(Ed. Note : This article is copy of talk given

by Dr. Gabrielson before the annual meeting ofthe Oregon Wildlife Federation in Bend onMay 28, 1948.)

Page 2 JULY, 1948

* THIS AND THAT *The new Wizard Falls trout hatchery

was activated when the first lot of rain-bow trout eggs were shipped in the earlypart of June from East lake. All majorconstruction work is now completed, in-cluding extensive rearing and broodponds and the hatchery building, whichhas a capacity for two million eggs.

Climatic conditions this spring havebeen rough on the pheasants. Little sur-vival can be expected from the earlyhatches on account of the cold wetweather. In eastern Oregon the latenessof the season has delayed the growth ofvegetation so that little nesting cover isavailable and high losses by predation arelikely. Also many nesting areas havebeen flooded out with high waters.

While plans call for the rearing and re-leasing of 60,000 pheasants this seasonat the game farms, the wet cold weatherlikewise has hindered artificial propaga-tion.

Improvement work scheduled for thissummer on the Summer Lake Manage-ment Area is well under way. Two milesof dike are under construction which,with the water control system that willbe installed this summer, will completethe Ana river diversion so that nestingand hunting areas can be better con-trolled. Two and one-half miles of newroad will be graveled as well as the dikesthat were constructed last year.

Fish liberation trucks have been busyhauling legal-sized trout held over thewinter at the hatcheries although re-leases in some areas have been held upon account of high water conditions.

Pennsylvania trout can be rather cost-ly when taken in excessive numbers. Arecent news clipping shows that a justiceof the peace in Chambersburg, Pennsyl-vania committed one angler to 533% daysin jail in default of $4,533.50 fine andcosts on charges of possessing 53 troutover the limit of ten.

A male opossum was killed recently bydogs about one mile east of Salem, ac-cording to Wayne Doughton of that city.This is the first report of an opossumbeing taken in the Willamette Valley inrecent years.

While some live-trapping and trans-planting of beaver had to be done duringJune because of high water conditions,the major part of the program wasstarted this month.

A resume of the study of the fox-pheasant relationship in the WillametteValley by the Oregon Wildlife ResearchUnit is being prepared and will appear ina later issue of the Bulletin.

Game Staff HoldAnnual Meeting

Field and administrative personnel ofthe game division held their annual staffconference at the Portland headquartersof the Commission on June 21, 22 and 23.The program covered discussions on thefollowing activities: big game, uplandgame, beaver and fur management, habi-tat improvement, waterfowl, predatorcontrol, Federal Aid, and information andeducation.

Outside speakers included Dr. Ira N.Gabrielson, President of the WildlifeManagement Institute; F. L. Ballard, U.S. Extension Service; A. S. Einarsen,Oregon Cooperative Wildlife ResearchUnit; Fred Kennedy, U. S. Forest Serv-ice; 0. L. Ressner and Norman Knott,Washington Department of Game; LeeKuhn and Jay Long, Oregon State Col-lege; W. A. Rockie, Soil ConservationService; Joseph F. Pechanec, PacificNorthwest Forest and Range ExperimentStation; D. E. Woodward, Robert Booneand Stanley Jewett, U. S. Fish and Wild-life Service.

Oregon State GameCommission BulletinPublished Monthly by the

Oregon State Game Commission1634 S. W. Alder StreetP. 0. Box 4136

Portland 8, OregonMIRIAM KAUTTU

EditorMembers of the Commission

E. E. Wilson, Chairman CorvallisTheodore R. Conn LakeviewKenneth S. Martin Grants PassR. D. McClallen EnterpriseLarry Hilaire Portland

Administrative StaffC. A. Lockwood ..State Game SupervisorF. B. Wire SecretaryF. C. Baker ControllerH. E. Bowers EngineerP. W. Schneider Director of Game

John McKean Upland GameA. V. Meyers . . Fed. Aid and WaterfowlR. U. Mace Big GameC. E. Kebbe FurbearersFrank Stanton . . Habitat Improvement

P. R. Needham Director of FisheriesR. C. Holloway Surveys and SalvageE. W. Goff HatcheriesH. 3. Rayner ...Diseases and Nutrition

H. R. Mangold Director of SuppliesC. B. Walsh...Director, Public RelationsG. E. Howell ..Fishways, Screen, Stream

and Lake ImprovementEntered as second-class matter September

30, 1947 at the post office at Portland, Oregonunder the act of August 24, 1912.

At the present time the Bulletin is circulatedfree of charge to anyone forwarding a writtenrequest.Permission to reprint is granted provided

proper credit is given.

June Meeting of theGame Commission

The Oregon State Game Commissionheld its regular monthly meeting in Port-land on June 11 and 12 and conducted thefollowing business:

In regard to request for right of wayover the Eel Lake property for construc-tion of road, the matter was continueduntil formal consent of the City of Reeds-port was received since they hold an op-tion on the property.

A request was received from Multno-mah county to pay for part of the ex-penses incurred in patrolling the high-way during the recent smelt run. Requestwas denied as the statute designates thepurpose for which the smelt license fundsmay be used.

Granting of easement to the EasternOregon Electric Cooperative Associationacross the Pendleton game farm propertywas approved on the condition that theline follows the boundary of the prop-erty.

It was ordered that 4,000 pheasanthens be held over the winter at the west-ern Oregon game farms for spring re-lease. The staff also was instructed toprepare an estimate on the cost of rais-ing setting hens in view of the presentscarcity which was hampering operationsat the game farms.

Request for creation of game refugeon private property adjacent to the Kla-math Falls city park was denied for thereason that it is not the policy of theCommission to create reserves when nobiological purpose is accomplished.

The bid of Ken Ward ConstructionCompany in the amount of $71,100 wasaccepted for improvements to be madeat the Roaring River hatchery.

A proposed lake fertilization programwas discussed and held over for furtherconsideration at the next meeting.

Resolutions were read from the OregonState Grange and the Clackamas CountyGrange.

Albert Tilden Morris, Milton, wasadded to the list of recommended appli-cants for membership in the game divi-sion of the State Police.

Sage Grouse BulletinFirst of New Fauna Series

"Oregon Sage Grouse," Oregon FaunaSeries Number 1, has just been publishedby the Oregon State Game Commissionunder provisions of the Federal Aid toWildlife Act, Oregon Project 6-R.

The bulletin, prepared by Wesley M.Batterson and William B. Morse, coversinvestigation made to learn what factorslimited the range and abundance of sagegrouse in Oregon and what requirementswere needed for its welfare. This is thefirst published work covering systematicsage grouse management in Oregon.

Copies of the bulletin are available fordistribution at the office of the Commis-sion.

JULY, 1948 Page 3

Floods cover recently purchased lands at Sauvies Island. Here tug boat towsa runaway brooder house.

Flash flood on May 27 washes out fish weir built across Wallowa river justabove Wallowa lake.

Floods Affect Fishand Game Operations

The recent floods and high water con-ditions have had their effect on opera-tions of the Game Commission, some-times in a rather unexpected manner.

The fish food situation at the hatcher-ies became critical because the meatpacking plants in the flood area along theWillamette had to shut down operationsfor an indefinite period. These plants arethe department's major source of supplyof fresh meat products.

Swollen waters in an irrigation ditchbroke out of the banks at the new Herm-iston game farm, flooding one entirefield and causing the loss of 500 to 600young pheasants. The chicks in thetwenty-acre field were two weeks old.

Another flash flood resulted in thewashing out of the fish weir across theriver above Wallowa lake, causing an es-timated loss of $4,000 in equipment.

Lands recently acquired on the lowerend of Sauvies Island as part of the pro-posed waterfowl management area andpublic shooting ground were completelyflooded and buildings on one of the farmsfloated against the dike. Tug boats werehired to pull the buildings back to levelground so that they would settle in anupright position when the water receded.Ducks and snakes swam around in largenumbers but the pheasants were forcedto roost in the trees.

The Game Commission is faced withits biggest fish salvaging operation whenthe flood waters recede from the thou-sands of acres that are now inundatedalong the Columbia river. Many men willhave to be brought in from the field toassist for as the waters start down, theland will be dry in a matter of a few days.Thousands of game fish will be lost un-less salvaging activities can be speedilycarried out.

Plans for the development of a newlake, known as Benson Park lake, nearMultnomah Falls will not materialize

this year. The lake, which recently wascleaned of trash fish by the Game Com-mission and screened, has been refilledwith carp and other scrap fish by over-flow from the river.

The attempt to live-trap and transportmountain goat kids from Washington toOregon ended in failure this year becausethe floods started on a rampage in theSinlahekin Valley just at the time Wes-ley Batterson, Oregon district agent, ar-rived to help with the trapping. Caughtin the midst of the flood with six bridgeswashed out, Batterson was lucky to havebrought himself and car out of the area.While, as an experiment, it was desiredto obtain the kids and see whether theycould be raised successfully in captivityat a game farm, for actual stocking pur-poses the Game Commission is relying ontrapping of mature goats this winter.

As mentioned elsewhere in this issue,high water conditions also have affectedfish liberation and egg-taking activities.

Chewaucan Marsh PublicShooting Grounds Set For '48

The agreement between the OregonState Game Commission and the Che-waucan Land and Cattle Company (ZXranch) for the operation of a publicshooting grounds this coming waterfowlseason has been completed and is essen-tially the same as the one in operationlast year. Approximately 50,000 acres ofthe ZX ranch will be affected. Of thisacreage 2,500 acres will be used as apublic shooting grounds and the remaind-er held as a refuge.

Although comparatively few hunterstook advantage of the opportunity tohunt on the ZX last year, the success perhunter was much higher than the morepopular Summer Lake public shootinggrounds. It is hoped that more of theduck hunting fraternity will try out theZX this season.

Habitat DevelopmentProgram Expanded

The recently established Departmentof Habitat Development, to be in chargeof Frank Stanton, formerly district agentat Bend, has assumed the responsibilityof maintaining several established proj-ects and has begun work on severalothers. Salting on big game ranges iscontinuing this year on selected areaswhere one or more specific objectives willbe met. Water development for mule deeris progressing in the Deschutes Game Re-fuge. Two 3,000 gallon water tanks withtroughs have been installed this year,adding to past spring developments.Further work is planned.

Two upland game habitat improvementdemonstration areas were establishedthis spring in the Central and Northeast-ern districts. Current plans call for anexpansion of this program to include alldistricts. The essential requirementswhich may be developed for use duringthe critical season are: cover, food andwater.

Techniques underway to develop coverinclude protection of areas from grazingand planting of selected species in stra-tegic locations. Where the food supply isinadequate at any season small food plotshave sometimes been established. Stripsof grain or other food crops may be pur-chased and left unharvested. Water de-velopment for birds, such as the barrel-type watering devices, are being demon-strated in two districts.

The objective in establishing theseareas is to obtain information and demon-strate practical procedures which can bemade available for use by cooperative in-dividuals and organizations.

To perform a work equal to that of amole, a man, in size comparison, wouldhave to dig a tunnel wide enough to per-mit the passage of his body and thirty-seven miles long, in a single night.

Page 4 JULY, 1948

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1947-48 Fur CatchDuring the 1947-48 trapping season

2,272 residents purchased licenses to trap.In addition, 86 new landowners regis-tered their lands for the privilege of trap-ping without the purchase of a licenseand 69 landowners re-registered for thesame purpose. The requiring of an annualregistration of land was made a regula-tion last year in an effort to get more ac-curate information on the number oftrappers and the number of fur animalstaken in the state. Another regulationput in effect at that time was the abol-ishment of trapping privileges to non-residents.

The 2,272 licenses sold last season is adecrease of 309 licensed trappers fromthe number operating the previous year.This explains in part the slight decreasein number of trapper return cards re-ceived and the number of animals takenfrom that of the previous season. To date2,092 reports have been received in com-parison to 2,263 at this time last year.

Prices on mink were exceptionally highand most of the trapping effort was di-rected toward them and toward musk-rats, which were also commanding highprices for the first half of the season.Otter prices also remained high, while aclosed season prevented the taking ofmarten.

Long-haired fur animals again werenot worth trapping and pelting and, con-sequently, were lightly trapped. This fac-tor is allowing for their continual in-crease and since most of these animalsare predatory by nature, this low furprice has been instrumental in the in-crease of predation on game animals,game birds, poultry and domestic stock.

Opossum are continuing to increase innumbers in Clatsop county and have nowextended their range into Columbia andWashington counties. These animals areeasily trapped but due to their low furvalue few of them are taken.

Trash Fish Killed atFern Ridge Reservoir

Over eight tons of carp were killed oneweek in the Long Tom River directly be-low Fern Ridge Reservoir by the trashfish control unit of the Oregon StateGame Commission. Under the directionof John Dimick, fisheries biologist incharge of trash fish control, work is alsobeing carried on at the Lake of theWoods, where better than 1,000 carp,1,000 suckers and many squaw fish hadbeen eliminated by the middle of June.

Control work on rough fish is alsoplanned for Olive, Crescent, Odell, East,Big and Little Lava, and Davis lakes andWarm Springs Reservoir for this summer.

Lions no longer exist in South Africa.

t"--`

JULY, 1948 Page 5

Opportunities ForSportsmen's Groups

(Continued from Page 1)in competition with other and more pro-ductive lands and they are reverting toforest. However, the average acreagethat is reverting to more suitable wildlifehabitat is small in comparison to the areathat is being more intensively utilized.

Water Productivity DestroyedThe effects of increasing human popu-

lations on aquatic resources is equallyobvious. Pollution by domestic sewage orindustrial wastes has destroyed the pro-ductivity of many waters. Excessive silt-ation caused by improper land manage-ment has smothered fishspawning beds and feedingareas in thousands of milesof streams. Great dams areblocking one river after an-other and by shutting off mi-gratory fish from spawninggrounds are destroying thesewealth producing resources.This is inevitable but a com-bination of human greed forimmediate profits plus thedesires of engineers to buildgreat monuments to them-selves too often push suchprograms far ahead of anynational economic need.Increased Demand for Game

Along with a growinghuman population, there isa greater and greater de-mand for fish and wildlife asindicated by the increasingnumber of licenses sold. Eachyear sees a new high in totalsales. Again, there are local-ities in which license salesdecreased, but these decreas-es are more than offset bythe total figures which haveconsistently displayed an up-ward trend for many years.License sales are an indicatorof the increasing pressurethat is placed upon fish andgame stocks, but they are notan accurate measure of thetotal demand since many in-dividuals can legally huntand fish without licenses. Itis probable that the numberin the field each season is ap-proximately double the num-

These diverging trends make the jobof every conservation department andevery sportsmen's organization increas-ingly difficult. I do not envy conservationofficials in their present predicament. Itis not often possible to do a job goodenough to clearly demonstrate results tothe average sportsman. A department,for example, may carry on an exception-ally good project in a definite area. Itmay double the wildlife or fish crop inthe average year, but if, in the same per-iod of time, the number of hunters orfishermen doubles, there is no more gameper individual than before the workstarted. Under such circumstances it isimpossible to convince the unthinkingthat more game or fish has been madeavailable. The usual result is that the only

hog. It is clear that no matter how effec-tive wildlife management may become,many hunters and fishermen will have torevise their ideas as to amounts that canbe taken by the average hunter. Cer-tainly a lesser share must be the portionof each as long as a constantly increas-ing number of individuals wish to helpharvest the crop. This means that meth-ods of getting more enjoyment out offewer pieces of game must be developedif public hunting and fishing is to be pro-vided for a nominal fee.

In other words, it is time that we re-alized that the easy pickings providedby a natural habitat which was onlymoderately utilized are gone. Such fishand game as may be harvested in thefuture must be the result of consciouseffort to provide it by making the re-

maining habitat as produc-tive as possible. It is timethat sportsmen's organiza-tions that occupy positionsof leadership in the conserva-tion field become aware ofthese conditions. The futuretask will not be easy. It isgoing to become more com-plicated and difficult in thecoming years. That meansthat the success of wildlifemanagement efforts will bepossible only to the extentthat such organizations asthis are willing to discard oldideas and personal prejudicesand face realistically presentconditions.

.ALLTif MONEYIN 's-lit' WORLD- 13uT NOTHING

TO DO,340 FOOD44.0240 RACE.

TO GO,

How Rich Will We Be When We Have Converted All Our Forests,All Our Soil, All Our Water Resources

And Our Minerals Into Cash?

ber of licenses. Sales in both the huntingand fishing fields are approximately 12,-000,000 according to the latest availablereports. This may mean approximately24,000,000 persons taking a share fromfish and game stocks. This fish and gamecrop must be produced in a constantlyshrinking environment and, except whereconsistent effort can prevent it, an en-vironment that is becoming less produc-tive.

reward for able'public service is a chorusof squawks from those who continuallywant more for themselves without beingwilling to help provide their game or fish.

Smaller Bags of Fish and GameI am not so pessimistic as to believe

that the end of public hunting and fishingis at hand. But I am sure that there islittle but unhappiness and disappoint-ment ahead for the pothunter and fish

Fundamental ProblemsThere are many things that

the sportsmen organizationscan do to help. First, and per-haps most important, theycan put first things first.That is they can focus theireffort and attention on fund-amental problems. In thepast too much time and en-ergy has been used in tryingto dictate the length of sea-sons, bag limits, size limitsof fish, and similar details ofregulation. The total annualtake of fish and game mustbe based on the crop pro-duced each year and limitedto the surplus that is avail-able for harvest rather thanon the wishful thinking of theharvesters. Likewise, creellimits and size limits must bedetermined by the fish pop-

ulation of the stream or lake. Only bymanaging wildlife harvests on a basis ofaccurate information will there be achance to secure the highest possible av-erage crop. Sportsmen should realizethat the most intelligent and efficientmanagement program cannot produce amaximum crop of game or fish everyyear. That crop will vary despite the


Page 6 JULY, 1948


(Continued from Page 5)best efforts of the human race because ofclimatic and other conditions which affectimmediate production. Only by correctlyadjusting the human take of the annualcrop is it possible to maintain usable fishand wildlife populations. As hunting andfishing pressures become intensified, itwill be less and less possible to maintainsuch stocks if pressure groups are to de-termine the seasons, the limits, or thetotal take permitted.

With more intensive use of land, it willbe more and more difficult to preservebreeding stocks and still permit open sea-sons. It can be done only by obtainingaccurate information on the size of thebreeding stock, success of the currentbreeding season, and the total surplusthat may be taken. It will be necessary todevise better methods of limiting the taketo that surplus. Therefore, instead of try-ing to determine details of regulation andforce programs upon the state, I urgethat organized sportsmen insist that theconstituted authorities employ compe-tent personnel, keep them on the job, anduse the data and information that theysecure in setting the seasons conserva-tively enough to insure future breedingstocks.

Sound Information Basis for ActionSecond, sportsmen's organizations can

exercise effective leadership in insistingthat all actions be based on sound infor-mation. Just because someone says thatremoving predators will bring back thegame does not make it so. The fact thatrestocking has been successful undersome conditions does not make it axio-matic that artificial propagation and re-stocking are always the answer to gameand fish problems. Habitat improvementwill not always produce results.

A man named Hitler some years agoinsisted that if a person lied long enoughand big enough, people would eventuallyaccept the statements as true. He suc-ceeded in getting quite a ways with thisphilosophy before his ultimate downfall,but in accomplishing it, he caused untoldcost and endless misery in the world.Likewise, there are those who shout loudand long to convince their fellow sports-men that they are right even when ad-vocating something that is going to beexcessively expensive in terms of results.They are perhaps not deliberate in theirdeceit, but they still bring many head-aches to the very groups who follow themblindly in the hope of arriving at themillenium.

There is no one final answer to anywildlife problem. In some cases lack offood and cover may limit or reduce pop-ulations. In other times and other places,predation, disease, overshooting, extra-ordinary climatic conditions, or unknownfactors may be responsible. The point I

am attempting to emphasize is that it isfoolish to attempt to solve wildlife prob-lems by blindly reproducing a projectthat was successful in some other time orplace since conditions affecting wildlifevary continually and the method thatbrought results at one time may not meetpresent needs at all.

Sportsmen, generally and quite natur-ally, look for an easy way out. Artificialpropagation and distribution has alwayshad a great appeal for the reason thatit calls for little or no sportsman's effortand, in theory at least, produces imme-diate results. Artificial stocking has itsplace in the wildlife program, but despiteits popularity, it cannot produce resultsexcept where suitable habitat for the spe-cies to be planted is present and unoccu-pied by that species. Stocking to provideshooting would at present costs of pro-duction and present license fees quicklybreak any game fund without producingany permanent results. Yet, too manystates are wasting funds in this mannerbecause of unthinking or ignorant sports-men's pressure.

Predator ControlPredator control campaigns which take

men into the field and provide enjoyment,as well as the delusion that they are help-ing the game, is popular but not alwayseffective. More often it is a waste of timeand energy. When game decreases intheir community, many sportsmen im-mediately advocate predator control; toooften by payment of bounties. Even incases where predator control is necessary,a bounty is usually a costly and ineffi-cient method of accomplishing results.This is commonly true for two reasons.First, no bounty system has yet been de-vised that can effectively eliminate fraud,if the financial inducements are greatenough to attract the attention of thosewho make a business of such frauds. Anybounty that is financially attractive willinevitably pay for predators from distantareas. Predators are frequently bountiednot once but several times by the ingen-ious schemes of those who make it a busi-ness. Second and perhaps of more imme-diate importance, is the fact that the costof the first animals actually killed be-cause of the bounty is so great. Most pre-dators affecting game species are fur-bearing animals. Many individuals are,therefore, taken by fur trappers in theirordinary activities. Such predators alsoprey on domestic poultry and domesticstock and are killed by farmers andstockmen at every opportunity. For ex-ample, a check made not long ago in theState of New York indicated that ap-proximately 50,000 foxes were taken an-nually by farmers and trappers. Natur-ally, if a bounty is paid, trappers will col-lect the bounty on each animal. It wouldbe legal and proper for them to do so.Yet, the conservation fund would haveto pay for 50,000 and 1 foxes before thebounty actually induced the killing of oneadditional fox.

Where predator problems exist, it isbest to tackle them locally. They are us-ually local and only occasionally statewide. It is much better to take direct ac-tion to reduce the predators where sucha program is needed. Much of my ownfield service was spent in working on con-trol problems and I had much opportun-ity to study its effect. There were timesand places where predators were the di-rect cause of the scarcity of game. Inthese cases, removal or reduction of thenumbers of predators was promptly fol-lowed by an increase in the game stocks.There were many more places where re-moval of the predators had no effectwhatever on the game populations simplybecause predation was not the imme-diately repressive factor.

Habitat Improvement for GameAt present, habitat improvement which

usually means the provision of additionalfood or cover or both is attracting muchattention. There are vast areas wherelack of proper food and cover is the im-mediate repressive factor holding downdesirable game populations. In suchareas, habitat improvement will producedefinite and permanent results. Wherethis is not true, don't expect such effortsto accomplish anything.

Fortunately, most states now have soilconservation districts organized by thefarmers to develop definite programs forgood land management. It is possible, byworking with their plans, to plant foodand cover with some assurance that theywill remain undisturbed. Never beforehas there been as good an opportunityfor local sportsmen's groups or state de-partments to work directly with farmerson programs that help both the farmers,by providing permanent vegetation whereneeded, and the game by insuring thatsuch plantings consist of good game foodand cover plants. It offers a direct andpractical method of counteracting to adegree the effects of constantly increas-ing human demands on the land. Thismay not always be true. Just at presentit offers an exceptional opportunity inmany sections to produce a direct in-crease in game populations. If such sec-tions exist in your community, habitatimprovement offers an attractive andproductive project for a sportsmen'sclub. I know such groups are doing amagnificent job. In one county withwhich I happen to be familiar, a countysportsmen's organization has for the pastseveral years furnished and plantedabout 50,000 shrubs and trees in perma-nent plantings. I understand that theyare stepping up their contribution to100,000 plants this year and hope thatwithin three years they will have plant-ings up to half a million annually. It willnot take long for such a program to pro-duce a definite increase in the game pop-ulations.

I would emphasize the fact that this isnot a program that will be useful in every


JULY, 1948 Page 7

Conference of WesternAssociation of State Gameand Fish Commissioners

C. A. Lockwood, Oregon State Gamer. Supervisor, Kenneth Martin, Game Com-

missioner from Grants Pass and sevenmembers of the staff from Oregon at-tended the conference of the Western As-sociation of State Game and Fish Com-missioners at Salt Lake City, Utah onJune 2, 3 and 4.

Large delegations from fish and gamedepartments of the eleven western states,along with representatives of some of theeastern states and the U. S. Fish andWildlife Service, met in general and tech-nical sessions for the three days.

The general sessions were keynoted bySeth Gordon, Executive Director of thePennsylvania Game Commission, in atalk on "Methods of Promoting Conser-vation Through Education." Along thesame line C. N. Feast, Director, Gameand Fish Commissioner, Colorado, spokein the general session on "Improved Pub-lic Relations Essential to ProgressiveWildlife Management."

One of the most lively discussions ofthe general sessions took place after twospeeches. The first was "Are WildlifeValues Being Considered in Project Plan-ning by the Bureau of Reclamation ?"delivered by E. 0. Larsen, Regional Di-rector, U. S. Bureau of Reclamation,Salt Lake City. This was followed by Dr.Ira N. Gabrielson, Director, WildlifeManagement Institute, Washington, D.C., speaking on "Reclamation vs. Con-servation."

Technical sessions were held every af-ternoon. These sessions were on FisheriesManagement, Wildlife ManagementProblems, Waterfowl, Upland Game andBig Game. P. W. Schneider, Director ofGame for Oregon, was chairman of thewildlife management discussions whileDr. P. R. Needham, Robert C. Hollowayand John McKean, all of the Oregon dele-

gation, delivered papers on various as-pects of their work.

Don W. Clarke, Director, Departmentof Game for the state of Washington waselected president of the Association forthe coming year and Dr. P. R. Needham,Director of Fisheries for Oregon, waselected president of the Western Divisionof the American Fisheries Society.

Book on Antelope Published"The Pronghorn Antelope and Its Man-

agement" by Arthur S. Einarsen, directorof the Oregon Cooperative Wildlife Re-esarch Unit at Corvallis, has just beenpublished by the Wildlife ManagementInstitute. The following review of thebook appears in the May 7 issue of theInstitute's "Outdoor News Bulletin":

" 'The Pronghorn Antelope and ItsManagement' is an extraordinary bookabout a singular American species. Com-paratively little has been known aboutthis elusive and intriguing big game an-imal, and this new publication is the firstcomplete treatise devoted exclusively toall phases of the life history and manage-ment of this fleet ghost of the westerngrasslands.

"Marked for extermination a short 25years ago, the antelope under sound man-agement and protection made the mostamazing comeback of any of our largerwildlife species. The story is a fascinatingand enlightening one. Einarsen, the fore-most authority on this beautiful trophyanimal, ably presents the reasons for itsreturn from the brink of oblivion. He re-counts the story of tireless efforts ofconservationists who made restorationpossible, the problems that faced gamemanagers in dealing with the unique spe-cies, and many new facts about thepronghorn's life history and economicstatus.

"This outstanding contribution to thenation's growing list of outdoor literaturewill be welcomed by all conservationistsand students of nature."

Tagged Trout RecoveredBear and Rock creeks, tributaries of

Pudding river in Clackamas county andMill creek, tributary of the Willametteriver at Salem, were stocked prior to theangling season with tagged cutthroat andrainbow trout, ranging in size from 6 to9 inches. A small circular metal tag wasattached to the right portion of the lowerjaw,. Plantings of 250 and 750 taggedcutthroat were made in Bear and Rockcreeks respectively. To date, approxi-mately 200 tags have been recovered,representing 20 per cent of the taggedfish released.

Mill creek received a planting of 500tagged rainbows and 500 tagged cut-throat. To date, about 50 tags have beenrecovered or 5 per cent.

Members of the Needy Rod and GunClub in the Bear and Rock creek areasand the Salem Chapter of the Izaak Wal-ton League in the Mill creek district areco-operating with the Game Commissionby contacting anglers for the recovery oftags and publicizing the purpose of thetagging program. This assistance is val-uable as it insures a more complete cen-sus of all anglers. Any angler who hasnot been contacted is requested to mailtags directly to the Game Commissionalong with a report as to the date andthe location of the catch. These returns


JULY-AUGUST CALENDAROpen season both months for :

TroutSalmon and SteelheadJack SalmonSpiny-rayed fishPredatory animals

Note: For specific exceptions, consultofficial synopsis of hunting or anglingregulations.

As part of experimental weed control, weedicide is pumped into Siltcoos lakefrom five-nozzle spray rig towed behind barge with outboard motor.

Containers in which Brazilian water weed is planted and small scale tests forcontrol are run with different types of weedicides.

Oregon State GameCommission Bulletin

1634 S. W. ALDER STREETP. 0. BOX 4136

PORTLAND 8. OREGON


(Continued from Page 6)community or on every piece of land.Where it is needed, there is no way inwhich better permanent results can beobtained. In these efforts sportsmen'sgroups are finding ways to increasetheir enjoyment of the game they do take.Instead of being in the field during ashort hunting or fishing season, they areout working the year around with thewildlife in which they are interested. Inother words, they have a 12-month out-door interest instead of one that lastsonly for a short period. This is one prac-tical way to increase the pleasure ob-tained from a game crop. There is alsoanother obvious advantage. Almost in-variably those who work to assist in pro-ducing game become less interested intheir own total kill and more in the wild-life itself. Their interest in the out-of-doors is widened and their recreationspreads over the entire year.

Stream and Lake Improvement .

What I have said about habitat im-provement for game applies with equalforce to fish. It does no good whateverto plant fish in waters that are not cap-able of sustaining more fish than are nowpresent. Planting waters that are notsuitable for the planted species is a com-plete waste. If the streams or lakes havedeteriorated because of excessive silta-tion due to improper farming of lands inthe stream valleys or from pollution dueto domestic sewage or industrial wastes,planting fish in any quantity or amountwill not help the situation. Such effortsare pure waste until the conditions thathave destroyed the productivity of thestream are corrected. Instead of urgingmore useless plantings of fish in suchwaters, why not get at the cause of thecondition and remove it before asking foranything else ? Corrective measuresmust eventually be taken and there wouldbe much less waste and much less con-fusion if sportsmen's organizations wouldface the facts rather than continuing tohope that the mere dumping of fish in astream will cure all troubles.

SummaryIn summary, what I am suggesting as

a suitable program is; first, to get factson which to base your own actions andrecomendations; second, that you insist

that your conservation authority main-tains a staff which is capable of securingadequate information to permit the wild-life resources to be managed to get thegreatest possible production each yearconsistent with existing climatic condi-tions and with other necessary uses ofthe land; and third, if your state depart-ment is wasting money or is using it inways that are not advantageous, I sug-gest that you examine your own and othersportsmen's organizations and see howmuch of this misdirected effort is due tothe pressures exerted by yourselves. Pub-lic authorities in a democratic countryare usually responsive to public wishesand if money is being wasted or if you arenot getting full returns, it is more thanprobable that you or kindred organiza-tions are more responsible for this condi-tion than you might be willing to admit.

In conclusion, it is time that we quitkidding ourselves, quit expecting some-thing for nothing and work consistentlyand conscientiously to get the greatestpossible production of wildlife that canbe obtained under existing conditions. Wemore and more need to keep open mindsin order to use to advantage new infor-mation. Programs must constantly bemodified to new and changing conditions.Methods of management as appear mostadvantageous at the time must be usedeven though we realize that in a fewyears these methods may be discarded tomake room for others that are better.

Battle for the RogueRiver Is Underway

(Continued from Page 1)Theodore R. Conn spoke on behalf of

the Game Commission urging full protec-tion for the fishery resources of theRogue basin. Mr. William Voigt, Westernrepresentative of the Izaak WaltonLeague of America gave cogent argu-ments for what he termed Plan C theConservation Plan which would look to-ward development of all resources af-fected. Mr. Jim Loder of Salem made anequally strong plea for full protection ofthe 'fishery resources in the basin. FredJohnson spoke for the U. S. Fish andWildlife Service and Mr. George Alcottfor the National Park Service. Both ofthese representatives expressed opposi-tion to the project from the standpoint offisheries, wildlife, and general recrea-tional values. The testimony at times was

heated. Most of the spontaneous applausewas developed for speakers on the fish-ery side.

Dr. Burrows will submit his review ofthe problem to the Bureau of Reclama-tion and his report will be made avail-able to all concerned in the near future.The Game Commission's report on thfRogue Project dated April 29, 1948,served as the principal basis for the ar-guments covering fishery protectionproblems.

Egg-Taking OperationsGet Late Start

Rainbow trout egg-taking operationsat Diamond and East lakes were delayeduntil about the first of June because ofthe unusually late break-up of the iceon the two lakes and bad road condi-tions. During the first ten days, approxi-mately 1,300,000 eggs were taken at Eastlake and 1,300,000 lake. Thetotal take of eggs, however, may be lessthan last year because of the shorterseason.

Tagged Trout Recovered(Continued from Page 7)

will provide valuable information on themigratory habits and the survival ofhatchery reared trout which can be ap-plied to future stocking programs.

Opening week-end fishing revealed aninteresting aspect in reference to migra-tion. In Mill creek, a tagged rainbow wascaught 100 yards upstream from its con-fluence with the Willamette river. Thistrout had migrated about 12 miles down-stream. Several others have since beencaught in the same area. In Rock creek,a tagged cutthroat was caught in a smalltributary six miles upstream from thepoint of liberation. In Pudding river inthe vicinity of Hubbard, two of thetagged Rock creek trout were recentlycaught. These fish had moved down Rockcreek and up Pudding river, a distanceof 10 miles. Still another tagged cut-throat from the Rock creek planting wastaken in Butte creek at Monitor. This fishhad migrated about 20 miles.

It is well to remember that many ofthese trout will eventually be caught inwaters other than the streams in whichthey were originally planted so all ang-lers are asked to watch for tagged troutno matter where they may be fishing.

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