The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1910-03-26
KILLS BREEDING BIRDS
Reason Why Spring Shooting Should
Be Prohibited

Reason Why Spring Shooting Should
Be Prohibited
The question often is asked-why
is it more destructive to shoot a
game bird in the spring than in the
fall? Surely the bird killed in the
fall will never produce any young
But. if birds are to be shot at all,
the fall is the only legitimate shoot
ing season. Nature supplies a sur
plus OF birds in the fall If no birds
were shot this surplus would be re-
duced during the fall and winter by
storm, starvation, cold, natural en-
emies and the accidents incidental to
migration. Restricted shooting IN
fall takes only a part of the surplus
but shooting in spring destroys the
naturally selected breeding stock
the ftest survivors which are on
their way north TO perpetuate the
race At this season the eggs in
the ovaries of the females of most
species are in process Of develop
ment. Eggs of the black duck have
been found in Massachusetts in
March and the wood duck nests there
in April A good days shooting in
March, April or May greatly reduces
the number of birds that might other
wise be produced the ensuing fall.
Spring shooting kills and drives
out the breeding birds. Wild ducks
and geese once bred in numbers in
New England and in about half the
United States In the early days Of
spring shooting in the Mississippi
Valley considerable numbers Of fresh
goose eggs were found on sand bars
where the focks had rested for the
night. Spring and summer shooting
either exterminated the birds that
bred here or drove them from this
country to the uninhabited regions
of Canada.
The argument advanced by The ad-
vocates Of the wasteful and pernlc-
ious practice OF spring shooting is
that it is useless to protect the birds
here while winter and spring shoot
ing is still allowed in the south. II
the people of the south were accus-
toned to rob and murder, our citi-
zens who 90 south in winter should
we offer that as a reason Why we
should rob and kill those who sue
ceeded in escaping and returning
safely TO their homes? If our Can
adam neighbors had acted on this
principle we should have had practic-
ally no wild fowl out of the United
States and that determination threat
ened the birds unless spring shooting
was stopped in Canada Therefore
nearly all the provinces forbade II
and their people respect the law.
Winter shooting in the south does
not reduce the birds that come here
as does spring shooting in The north
Many of the birds killed in the south
breed in the northwest and never
come here, and we find by expert
| ment that even the most local spring
protection in the north almost i'm
mediately increases the number OIL
birds. A Rhode Island man owning
a small pond allows no shooting
there and black ducks breed about
his pond and although he shoots
there in the fall, he allows no sprins
shooting. Last July Is black ducks
that were bred there were counted
on his side of the pond and none oil
the other and by September frs
about $50 were seen. On Fisher!
Island the wild fowl were protected
in spring for a few years and be
came numerous there, while at thu
same time on the near shore of Con
necticut, where spring shooting wa
then allowed, the ducks were few
and far between. Since spring shoot
ing was abolished in Connecticut
three years ago, wild fowl have be
come more plentiful than for man.
years In Jefferson county, New
York, spring shooting was forbidden
by law before 1t was prohibited il
the rest of the state and soon |
seemed as II the ducks from all owe
the state were congregating there
Every state that has prohibte
spring shooting has had, great III
crease in both breeding and migrat
ing birds. No state that has trie
the absolute abolition of sprin
shooting for a number of years ha
repealed the law protecting tn
birds.
Edward Howe Forbush,
Aent Nat. Assn of Audubon Societie