Plan of work. The estimate of $7,571,000 will be used for salaries and expenses of operation and maintenance of national wildlife refuges. The refuge program is directed at the perpetuation of migratory waterfowl under laws and treaties of the United States through the preservation and restoration of habitat needed for reproduction of food and shelter for the species. In addition to areas managed solely for waterfowl, a number of refuges are operated to perpetuate big game and upland game birds and mammals, rare and endangered species of fauna of North America and colonial nongame birds.

Recognizing the needs of an increasing human population, the management of the refuges embodies the principle of the multiple-use concept. Thus, the program is concerned with: Maintenance of ecological units of habitat best suited to serve the needs of a species or several species of wildlife by maintenance or manipulation of impounded waters; stewardship of the soil for the production of supplementary food crops or retaining an optimum ecology; control of undesirable and competing vegetation, animal, and bird life; maintenance and protection of real property and physical facilities at an economic level; conduct of economic use programs of farming, grazing, timber harvest, fur harvest, and sale of other surplus products of the land in such a manner as to be consistent with the wildlife management objectives; and public recreation on designated portions of the refuges when such use can be accomplished without conflicting with the primary objectives for which the refuges were established.

Financing the wildlife refuge program

The following tabulation shows, by sources of funds, the total available in 1961 and the estimates for 1962 for financing the development and management of the wildlife refuges program:

(b) Enforcement of Migratory Bird and Lacey Acts The estimate of $2,390,300 is an increase of $465,400, of which $23,900 is needed for pay act costs and $441,500 is for the following:

Need for increase.-The increase of $23,900 for pay act costs is needed to maintain the same level of financing as 1961 and the increase of $441,500 is needed for the following purposes:

(a) Enforcement-additional staffing, $43,355: Undercover investigations of this Bureau during the past several years indicate that commercialiation of migratory waterfowl is much more extensive than had been known or realized. From evidence gathered thus far, there is reason to believe that in excess of 100,000 ducks and geese are illegally taken annually by market hunters. As an adjunct to a stepped-up enforcement program to stamp out this practice, additional undercover investigations are needed. The following is a compilation of data pertaining to the undercover program:

Over a period of years, two investigators have been responsible for the arrest and conviction of 210 individuals engaged in the unlawful commercialization of migratory game birds. This record of arrests, plus the fines and jail sentences, clearly demonstrates what can be accomplished. The inhibiting effect on others when specific undercover cases are terminated and publicized is of great value to the general enforcement program. But, this same record along with the information obtained on widespread commercialization, further points up the need to increase the present staff; $30,560 is requested for the salaries and expenses of two additional undercover agents.

Bureau responsibilities for the protection and management of migratory birds in the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico are not being met. Waterfowl, doves white-crowned pigeons, and other migratory birds on these islands constitute an important resource and it is incumbent on the Bureau to provide manpower for the protection and management program in cooperation with the local gov ernments. No funds have previously been available for such a program; $12,795 is required for the salary and expenses of a game management agent for these

areas.

Equipment replacement, $307,200.-To keep pace with the average hunter to day, it is essential that game management agents be furnished proper and ade quate tools. To do their work effectively, the automobiles, aircraft, boats, and radios assigned to them must be capable of dependable performance. Of high priority on the equipment replacement schedules are automobiles. The increase will provide for replacement of 91 automobiles used by game management agents. Of these 91 automobiles to be replaced, at least 18 will have been operated more than 100,000 miles by July 1, 1961; 42 will have been operated between 80,000 and 100,000 miles; 31 will have been operated between 60,000 and 80,000 miles and all will meet replacement standards. In the conduct of their regularly assigned duties, game management agents travel 25,000 to 30,000 miles a year over unimproved roads and cross country, through snow, sand, and mud. Their work requires towing boats or cargo trailers at sea level and high altitudes; $145,600 is requested for replacement of automobiles.

Normal aircraft life expectancy, based on past experience, is 5 years. This time is even shorter if operations are on or near salt water where aluminum corrodes and fabrics deteriorate at an accelerated rate. All but one of the aircraft used in enforcement activities operate under these conditions. Constant care and preventive maintenance can help extend the life of aircraft and this has been practiced by the Bureau, as evidenced by the number of aircraft presently "overage" and operating. Of a total of 13 aircraft 9 are beyond the normal replacement age and of these 9, 5 are operating in the "dangerous age" category. It would be uneconomical to attempt to keep the "overage" aircraft in safe operating condition because of prohibitive costs of major repairs. The replacement of worn-out engines, replacement of fabric, removal and cleaning of airframe corrosion, and recertification by FAA that the aircraft is airworthy could cost as much as the price of a new plane. Replacement of six aircraft at this time at an estimated cost of $74,100 is essential.

The phenomenal growth of the pleasure boat industry since World War II has made all areas frequented by migratory birds readily accessible to an ever-increasing number of wildlife hunters, the majority of whom use modern highpowered boats. Enforcement of the migratory hunting regulations in areas where marsh and coastal habitat are extensive can be accomplished most effectively by boat. This entails traversing large bodies of water. Sound and durable boats are required to pursue and apprehend violators with relative safety to agents. Most of the floating equipment used in the program is inadequate for this purpose. Many of the boats are too small to operate safely on large bodies of water. They are underpowered and cannot compete with powerboats used by present-day law violators. Fast, modern boats are indispensable equipment to game management agents; $55,050 is requested for necessary boat replacements for the game management program.

Radio equipment used by game management agents must be replaced with new mobile radiotransceiver units. Most of the sets presently in use are 5 or more years old and have attained or passed their full life expectancy. It is doubtful that more than one-half the radio units in use today will be satisfactory in 1962. FCC regulations require all sets to be converted to new narrow-band frequencies by 1962. It will be impossible to make the necesary conversion of some sets and impracticable to convert others because of reduced efficiency. In addition to replacements, a number of new units will be needed in States where radio networks have recently been installed; $32,450 is needed for this item.

Operating costs, $37,800.-Increased operating expense funds are needed for each of the 126 game management agents in the 48 contiguous States. Amounts now available are insufficient to permit full attention by agents to all phases of the game management program for a full 12-month period. Each year the scope of activities of game management agents broadens. Greater demands are made for their participation in migratory bird population and kill surveys, in migratory bird banding projects, in conservation education, in safety campaigns, in depredation control programs, and in State cooperative management and protection programs.

Additional demands on agents and increased costs are anticipated as a result of the recently amended Lacey Act which broadened responsibilities in the field of mammal, fish, reptile, and bird importations. Congress also recognized the important and ever-expanding need for migratory game bird enforcement through the passage of the act of September 8, 1960, Public Law 86-732, placing certain violations of the migratory bird regulations in the category of felonies. Insufficient operating funds reduces the effectiveness of agents and the program suffers. Agents are tied to their offices instead of engaging in field activities which require travel and equipment-operation funds. The effect on enforcement has been marked. The increase will provide sufficient operating funds to allow the most effective use of the agents' time.

(b) Migratory game bird surveys, $53,145

The gathering, evaluation, and application of data under the survey program are basic to establishment of the annual hunting regulations. Hunting pressures are mounting throughout the country and expanding human population is making more intensive uses of the land in ways detrimental to populations of wildlife. The problem of less game for more hunters has reached acute stages in many areas. Permitting a greater harvest of annual game crops is one means of bringing a solution to this problem. However, to guard against overutilization and depletion of the game crop, more precise measurements of annual production and population size are necessary. To that end, more time must be spent in the field working on surveys and banding projects that will further delineate the concentration areas, the breeding areas, and the hunting areas. A stimulated public is showing more and greater interest in "the story behind the regulations," as evidenced by "show me" trips to the Canadian nesting grounds, TV and radio interviews, and other informational projects. The increase will provide for one additional wildlife biologist to give field supervision to this program; the replacement of one aircraft, automobile, and pickup truck; the overhaul of aircraft; and other operating expenses incident to the expanded banding program to be conducted throughout the States.

Plan of work. This activity covers (1) the administration and enforcement of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, as amended, and regulations promulgated thereunder to give effect to the treaties with Great Britain and Mexico for the protection of migratory birds; the Lacey Act regulating interstate and foreign commerce in birds and furs; and other Federal statutes enacted for the protection, conservation, and management of certain wildlife resources in the United States, the Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico; (2) the gathering, evaluation, and application of data affecting the preservation and utilization of migratory game birds; and (3) the development and use of depredation control methods to provide farmers with assistance in curbing and reducing damages caused by migratory waterfowl.

Enforcement: One-hundred and thirty-eight U.S. game management agents are engaged in enforcement of the Federal wildlife conservation laws and regulations and carrying out such management activities as bag checks, the midwinter inventory of migratory game birds, studies of nesting conditons, banding projects, wildlife extension programs, investigations of damages to agricultural crops by injurious waterfowl, demonstrations of depredations control techniques, and otherwise assisting and advising farmers and agriculturists on problems arising from depredations to agricultural crops. The agents maintain a close working relationship with the States and emphasis is placed on a cooperative FederalState program of game management. The intensive educational program carried out by the agents is doing much to establish acceptance and observance of the laws.

Surveys: Migratory game bird surveys, inventories, and banding projects are conducted throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico, and the West Indies, with the purpose of gathering current data concerning the status of the resource. The gathering, evaluation, and application of data under this project are basic to establishment of the annual migratory bird hunting regulations. In cooperation with State game departments, Canadian Wildlife Service, Provincial game departments, the Wildlife Management Institute, and Ducks Unlimited, the Bureau conducts intensive aerial and ground surveys of the migratory waterfowl on the Canadian breeding grounds to determine population trends, the effects of hunting pressure, causes of mortality and other data essential to migratory game bird management. Extensive banding programs are carried out in Canada and the United States for purposes of clarifying migratory routes of game birds from the breeding grounds to the flyways and determining annual