The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1911-03-06
SPRING AND WINTER
WILD FOWL SHOOTING
State Ornithologist Advises
as to Legislation

Legislature to extend the legal season
for shooting wild ducks and geese.
The present law closes the season Jan.
l, but these bills would extend it to
Feb, March Or April. One of the du-
ties of the State Ornithologist is to
act in advisory capacity to legislation
affecting bird life and in accordance
Herewith he is issuing to the State
press the following opinion:
1t is a matter of common knowl-
edge that there has been In the last
two or three years a notable increase
in the abundance of wild ducks in our
State, particu, arly on the coast and
up the principal rivers. This fall and
winter there has been the biggest in
crease of all. The only assfgnable
cause, as generally admitted, is the
abolition of late winter and spring
shooting. Why, than, should we undo
this successful policy, just as it is
beginning to show splendid results?
For convenience. the opponents Of
the existing law may be divided into
two classes--those desiring spring
shooting and those asking a prolonga-
ton of the winter shooting only.
As for general spring shooting, there
is nothing sound in its favor. 1t is
the old policy of killing the goose
lead to the determination Of all our
game. The argument that there is
better shooting in spring, when the
mated birds under the impulses Of
love are tanner and come in better to
the decoys. is just the reason against
it. Another argument used is that
the sea ducks, such as broad-b:lls.
scoters and oldsquaws. breed later
than the fresh water ducks, and n ay
properly be killed later Although
have personally found the nests and
eggs Of nearly all these wild ducks
1vv y
ducks are late breeders. do not con-
slider this policy practic ablesof making
different seasons for different classes
Of ducks. The average gunner can
not. or will not discriminate, and such
a law would be recognized more by
the breach than in its observance.
There is more apparent reason for
extending the open season for one
month, to Feb. l. as the ducks prob
ably do not mate till February How
ever, / do not consider this advisable.
For most game there is already too
much shooting. and the general policy
is for restriction rather than extens on.
In Connecticut We now have open
season for ducks for one-third Of the
year and even on the coast there are
ducks for two months and a half Of
this period. To the proposal made, to
swap September for January all the
upstate sportsmen would object, for
great majority. If We should extend
the season to Feb. I. at the next ses-
sion there would be a demand from a
certain class for March / and so on.
Eleven States of the Union. nearly
one-quarter. have lined up for stop
ping all shooting on Jan. l. This
should be adopted by all the north
ern States, with perhaps another
month for the southern States as the
ducks do not reach them SO early in
the autumn Best of all would be
the passage by Congress of the
Weekes' Bill, giving over to Federal
regulation the laws relating to migra-
tory birds.
AS it is even now, we are coming
pretty near to making the New Eng
land coast and Long Island Sound a
game preserve and wildfowl refuge.
Nearly all the States close the shoot
ing season with the New Year. New
Hampshire, with but tiny strip of
coast, allows one month longer. Rhode
Island Is our one conspicuous retro
grade sinner, allowing shooting to
April 1-much as we in Connecticut
ignorantly did until recently up ito
May /, before which date I would find
the eggs Of our black ducks and wood
ducks already laid. Long Island stops
shooting Jan. IL. The general result
is that multitude of ducks. not be-
ing over-harrassed, especially during
the severer part of the winter, are
staying on our coasts as a refuge. in
stead of migrating further south
where they would be deceminated
without mercy. A fine breeding stock
is thus saved to go north to multiply
and return with re-enforcements in
the fall most of this increase to re-
main with us. Thus the southern
shooting grows poorer and ours bet
ter.
The complaint has been that the
ducks hitherto have stayed out at sea
and did not tend inshore TIL after
Jan. THAT is to say till the perse-
cution had ceasedi Now that the
ducks have been having more of
square deal, last fall they came in
shore unprecedentlv early, and there
was some good broad-bill shooting
even in October. Down in the Caro-
1inas they say that the prosecuted
ducks are now getting the habit of
staying out at sea each day till after
dark, depriving the gunners Of their
give them no protection at all. and
such would serve them right.
Sportsmen friends I have as much
sporting blood in my veins as anyone
and have frosted my fingers and toes
many a time lying on by back in an
open dory out in the wintry sea- wait
ing for fowl. But let's restrain our
enthusiasm a bit, and sacrifice little
for the general good. In the end we
shall all be better off and have more
and lasting sport. Let the law stand
as il is
HEpBFRT K. JOB,
state Ornithologist West Haven