Evening star., 1936-11-15
DUCK HUNTING

for the work Is now the chief impedi.
ment to this method Of attack.
. The water caltrop, an annual plant
indigenous in China and India, Is also
Objectionable In the latitude Of the
Potomac because Of the five pointed,
steellike spikelets which armor its
fruit, so-called seeds" The infertile
seeds will float as far as IS to 40
miles in fresh water and are washed
up on bathing beaches, where they are
as insidious as stray needles as sources
Of severe lacerations and spike wounds
to the feet of bathers who accidentally
step upon the hidden fruits. about
the size Of unshucked hickory nuts.
Strange to say, the spikelets and
outer protective covering Of the water
caltrop fruit are not the external
Notifications Of some poisonous or
non-edible material within. Actually
the center Of the fruit Is the source
Of o nutritious starchy food eaten
extensively by oriental peoples.
viii this dangerous foreign species
Of the plant kingdom spread to other
American streams and in time i'm.
peril duck hunting generally through
out the United States through cur.
tailment of feed supply?
Thus far the water caltrop has
been identified in but one other
waterway in this country. It has
been found in the old Erie Canal,
which feeds from the Mohawk River
in New York State. 1t probably has
gained . foothold in other fresh.
water streams. Now Is the time to
do something about the pest before
1t Is too late. Seemingly, it Is up
to the duck-hunting fraternity to
start determined drive for the eradi.
cation Of this undesirable plant i'm.
migrant from the Potomac River. the
old Erie Canal and wherever else
it has become established. Washing
ton nimrods might well fire" the
initial verbal blasts In this essential
campaign to arouse Congress to action.
MISTER DISTRICT DUCK HUNT.
Ava ER, probably you do not know
about it, but, nevertheless, the Good
year bllmp plays an important part
in your annual duck quests. No,
you're wrong as q defective watch
If you think that either the blimp.
which you see so often just above the
Washington skyline, or other aircraft.
are used for duck-hunting purposes.
That, as you should know, Is contrary
to law, although the story goes that
the duck bootleggers out on the West.
ern coast use aircraft surreptitiously
In slaughtering waterfowl. The WASH
ington-stationed blimp flies down one
shore Of the Potomac and up the
other annually on q fair-weather day
early In January on . duck-scouttng
tour. usually Mr.. F. c. Lincoln and
other specialists Of United States Bio
logical Survey ride aS oficial observers
in the lishter-than-air craft. They
do not attempt to make bird census,
but they do get o very accurate COM
parison Of the ducks then present
along the Potomac on the marshes,
covers and feeding grounds with the
similar occupancy Of the previous
year. Thus they obtain o fairly SAT-
isfactory estimate Is to whether the
duck population Is staging Q gain
or continuing to decrease. These data
and the results OF thorough reconnoi-
tering carried on by q dozen Bio
logical Survey experts in the Canadian
breeding grounds and other points
during the subsequent Spring and
Summer enable the Government biol
ogists TO forecast with Amazing &C.
curacy the coming Fall duck migra.
ton. All that information Is Of mon
umental importance In their decisions
as to whether the shooting and legal
kill requirements Of that late Fall
should be further restricted or lib
eralized.
Some black ducks as well as q few
mallards breed and nest on the Po-
tomac grounds near Washington;
these are wild ducks, however, quite
dissimilar In their fear Of man to the
puddle duck" nallards which you
may see II you motor that way In the
vicinity OF Reaches Run.