is so unusual an event that no conservation program could justify depriving the hunter of the thrill of bagging one of these rare migrants. That is part of the charm of duck hunting. Wood duck The wood duck (Aix sponsa) has made a phenomenal recovery in New England without the benefit of any help except a closed season. The wood duck was more common everywhere in Essex County on fresh water during the fall of 1942, than the black duck. It never frequents the salt marshes in Essex County and consequently cannot be considered as a possible beneficiary in connection with that part of the refuge. It will be discussed in connection with the breeding possibilities in the fresh water area. The fact that the Fish and Wildlife Service has opened the season on this bird, shows that it is hardly necessary to provide sanctuaries for its protection at this late date. It has been restored simply by regulation of shooting, and that method is still open to the Service to control its status in the future. Black duck In surveying the avifauna of Essex County, Dr. Townsend approached the problem from the viewpoint of the topography of the region. He divided the area into environmental zones and described the birds of each region. Among his classifications were the following: The ocean; the sand beaches; the sand dunes; the salt marshes; the fresh marshes; the ponds. Dr. Townsend's interest was chiefly centered on waterfowl, and he was a careful student of their courtship habits. His observations can be relied on. In discussing the salt marshes of Essex County he states that "The three characteristic ducks of the marshes during the migrations and in winter, are the black duck (both the common and the red-legged), the American golden eye or whistler, and the red-breasted merganser." The only other ducks named at all under the salt marshes are the goosander, the hooded merganser, the scoters and the bufflehead. Not one of the species, except the black duck, for which the Fish and Wildlife Service want to create this refuge are even mentioned. Even under the fresh marshes only the teal are mentioned. Is Dr. Townsend, who studied the area for 25 years or more, or the Fish and Wildlife Service correct? The writer prefers to rely on Dr. Townsend. The red-legged (Anas rubripes rubripes) and the common (Anas rubripes tristis) black duck are discussed together in this report without considering the authenticity of the subspieces. The black duck, and the black duck alone, is the game species of the Essex Marshes. Kortright, in The Ducks, Geese and Swans of North America recently published by the American Wildlife Institute, says of the black duck, "Were it not for the abundance of this species, the gunners of the East would fare badly, as that part of the continent lacks the great diversity of wild fowl found in the West." Forbush says "The black duck is the 'wild duck' of New England." Bent in Bulletin 126, says, "The black duck or dusky duck, as it was formerly and more properly called, for it is far from black, fills an even more important place among the wild fowl of eastern North America than does the far-famed mallard of the interior and western part of our continent. The black duck, by which name it is universally known among gunners is decidedly the duck of the Eastern States, where it far outnumbers all other species of fresh water ducks. The West has many other species to divide the honors with the mallard, but in the East the black duck stands practically alone." (Italics by author.) Quantitative analysis In considering the waterfowl population of most areas over a period of years, it would be hard to arrive at any quantitative results as to the proportion that one group bears to another or to the total population. Most authorities classify the birds as rare, common, abundant or such similar terms. We may arrive at more accurate measurements in the case of Essex County. Since Wenham Lake is so close to the area selected for the proposed refuge and since we have accurate records kept by Dr. Phillips, one of the world's greatest authorities on ducks, it might be well to make a table of the occurrence of those species which the Fish and Wildlife Service claim will benefit from this refuge. The following table will include the canvasback, the redhead, the mallard, the baldpate, the blue-winged teal, the green-winged teal, and the Shooting records Wenham Lake-Dr. John C. Phillips' stand, 1897 to 1925, inclusive-total of 4,288 ducks and geese taken 1 These 7 species are the only ones in addition to geese and black ducks which the Fish and Wildlife Service claim will benefit from the proposed refuge. 2 Geese include 1 brant. 3 All other ducks include the 3 mergansers, white wing and surf scoters, greater and lesser scaups, ringnecked, European widgeon, shoveler, woodduck, goldeneye, bufflehead, 5 old squaw, ruddy, 1 gadwell, a few unclassified, and no American scoters. pintail. It may be borne in mind in examining this table, that these species would appear oftener and in greater numbers at Wenham Lake than at the Essex marshes, since five of them are surface-feeding fresh water ducks and the other two seek wild celery and pond weeds, which are plentiful at the lake, for food. We find in examining this table that the seven species which the Fish and Wildlife Service claim will benefit from this refuge constitute only 8.57 percent of the ducks and geese, while black ducks alone constituted 41.36 percent and the other species another 41.16 percent. In the light of this evidence and the statements of the best authorities that the black duck is the exclusive game species of New England, it would appear that the case for or against the proposed refuge must be decided solely on the basis of the black duck. Every hunter in New England knows this. The fish and Wildlife Service can prove it by unbiased observations on the Essex marshes any fall. THE HEREDITARY ATLANTIC FLYWAY The Fish and Wildlife Service have officially stated that one of the purposes of the proposed refuge at Parker River is safeguarding the hereditary Atlantic flyway. The use of this term creates a misconception of the migratory movement in New England. It has led to the popular belief that there is a well established lane of travel along the New England coast confined to a comparatively narrow strip bordering the coast line. It is upon such a misconception that the Fish and Wildlife Service seek to justify the establishment of this refuge. Were the migrations of waterfowl in New England confined to this narrow coastal strip, it would necessarily follow that the entire migratory movement must pass through any given area along the coast. In addition it would tend to congregate in those marshy areas offering food and resting places. Nothing is farther from the truth than this picture of a narrow coastal flyway. As a matter of fact, the migratory routes of all the waterfowl visiting New England are not thoroughly understood, nor have they been sufficiently mapped to give a clear picture. Enough is known however, to establish the general pattern for birds breeding in the northeastern section of the continent, the real reservoir for New England migrants, and the routes of some species have been pretty definitely fixed. There can never be as definite information available on the spring migrations as on the fall. Spring shooting is now banned in this country and Canada and thus there is not a check on banding records in that season. The general movement is probably more diverse than in the autumn. The opening of the ponds and rivers doubtedlessly attracts birds inland that have wintered along the coast. Although the sea ducks tend to follow north along the coast in early spring, some of them such as the goldeneye and the white-winged scoter strike west or northwesterly over an inland route. The black duck, as soon as the ice starts to leave the rivers and ponds, breaks away from the large concentrations on the coast and migrates in pairs or small flocks. The brant according to Bent gather in the spring in the vicinity of Monomoy, Muskegat, and Chatham Bay. Up to this time the flight has been coastwise, but on leaving Cape Cod they fly directly across the ocean in a northeasterly direction to the Bay of Fundy, thence across the neck of Nova Scotia up to the Gulf of St. Lawrence. It appears that occasionally an offshot from the main flight leaves Long Island Sound near the Housatonic River and crosses overland to the St. Lawrence River. The Essex marshes are far removed from either route. 4 The Canada goose is one of the earlies of the waterfowl to migrate in the spring. Dr. Phillips says that the spring flight is well to the east of the fall flight belt, and that the birds have a tendency to tarry on the outer Cape and Vineyard. In recent years there has been a concentration at Martha's Vineyard of seven or eight thousand birds in the spring. There is a spring concentration at Merrymeeting, before the large flocks break up, but this corresponds to the fall flight through the same region. Only relatively small numbers ever appear in the Essex region in the spring, although they may vary greatly from year to year. Those Canada geese that do appear in Essex County at this season frequent the flats of Newburyport Harbor rather than the area selected for a refuge. The writer was unable to find any definite information on the spring migration of those fresh water species of ducks that occasionally visit us in the fall with the exception of the blue-winged teal. It was emphasized that this species avoided the New England Coast at that season. Since Essex County is only within the breeding range of the black duck and the wood duck the spring migration is not of importance to us. All places are safe to the waterfowl in the spring and the writer cannot understand the necessity of creating a sanctuary to afford them resting and feeding areas. The fall migration, as it may affect the possible use of the area proposed as a refuge for resting purposes, must be carefully considered. Contrary to the popular conception that the entire migratory movement is confined to a ebastal strip, the truth is that there is a general northeasterly-southwesterly movement over the entire region of New England and its adjacent waters. It is true that a large part of the sea ducks do follow the shore line, but on the other hand, a great many of the scoters avoid the coast until they hit Cape Cod. We are fortunate that we have some definite information on the migratory route of particular species. Dr. J. C. Phillips states that the western edge of the flight of the Canada goose crosses Cape Ann near Essex. It extends in a belt 36 miles wide to the east of Essex and is strikingly parallel to the coast between Portland and Boston, and some distance offshore. The direc tion of flight is approximately 20° east of true north. This evidence by Dr. Phillips would place the main body of the Canada goose well to the east of the Essex marshes, and consequently they could not be expected to benefit, except in the case of stragglers, from the proposed region. In speaking of this belt of migration, Dr. Phillips states there are rarely any "tending" geese and records the same flight being noted on the same day at Wenham, Oldham, and Montauk Point, Long Island. 6 The Auk, vol. XXVII, July 1910, pp. 263–271. 5 There is, in addition to the main migratory body, a flight of Canada geese which strikes into Merrymeeting Bay in Maine. Comparatively speaking, this is a small part of the northeastern body of Canada geese. On leaving Merrymeeting Bay, they work down in a generally southwesterly direction, passing through the ponds and lakes of the interior, and finally reaching Long Island Sound through the Connecticut River Valley. In many years of observation the writer has noted this direction of flight as the flocks passed through southern New Hampshire and eastern Massachusetts. On leaving the ponds or passing overhead, the flocks head to the southwest. Undoubtedly stray flocks from both the Merrymeeting flight and the maritime flight pass over the Essex marshes, but they seldom alight in the area proposed for the refuge. The fall migration of the brant is similar to that of the Canada goose, but it occupies a more easterly path, the western edge of the brant flight overlapping the eastern edge of the Canada goose flight. They are a long way offshore in the region of Cape Ann, and the most westward flocks do not hit the coast line until they reach Hull or Duxbury. Bent says in Bulletin 130, in describing the fall fight, "They now migrate down the west coast of Hudson Bay, cross eastern Canada to the Gulf of St. Lawrence, which they reach late in September, cross the neck of Nova Scotia to the Bay of Fundy, and then head straight for Cape Cod, where they usually begin to arrive about the middle of October. So far their flight has been more rapid than in the spring, but from here on their movements are more leisurely and they scatter along the coast, lingering at favorable spots until well into the winter." The brant would thus not benefit in the slighest by the establishment of the proposed refuge. In the fall migration from their Greenland breeding range, the greater snow goose arrive in small flocks at St. Joachim, Quebec, on the lower St. Lawrence and apparently the entire race gathers there before proceeding south. Bent says that both the spring and fall migrations are overland across New England, and they apparently do not ordinarily stop en route after leaving the St. Lawrence River before reaching the southern coast of New Jersey. Forbush was apparently mistaken about the origin of the flight being in Hudson Bay and so may not be correct in including the Champlain, Hudson Valley in the route. They have been taken in Connecticut in stormy weather and perhaps come down the Connecticut Valley. Only wandering flocks ever reach the Essex marshes. The fall migratory movement of the black duck presents a similar picture to the Canada goose and brant. The general movement is in the northeasterlysouthwesterly direction, except that it extends over a very much wider belt. In fact, it extends westerly from a line connecting Nova Scotia in the north and Cape Cod in the south to well into the interior of New England. It has been found that birds banded on Cape Cod seldom show up in the Newburyport area and, in fact, are not even reported from the northern coast of Maine. This would, of course, indicate a direct flight from Nova Scotia to Cape Cod. Birds banded in the Newburyport area fail to show up in the Cape Cod area, but, on the contrary, are reported in the south from the Connecticut region. Even the Newburyport birds do not appear in great numbers in Maine, but instead are reported from New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. The implication of this is clear. The birds do not follow the coast line but strike boldly across the intervening land and water masses in order to follow their inherited direction of migration. Thus the great body of New England black ducks are not funneled into any one particular spot along the coast. There is a coastal movement, but that is composed of native birds breeding within 15 to 20 miles of the ocean. Early in the fall these birds, instead of striking out in a southwesterly direction, will work down to the shore line to obtain better feed before they have started any real migratory movement. Later they are quite apt to work down the coast as they migrate and are probably responsible for the early concentrations of black ducks seen in favorable feeding grounds along the Maine, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts coast. A large part of them are probably replaced later in the season by more northerly breeding birds who have followed the usual migratory routes. Not enough is known of the migratory movements of the other game species in New England to make definite statements. It is impossible to say whether they are from occasional eastern breeding birds of the Maritime Provinces, or come in from the usual breeding grounds in the prairie provinces of Canada. In addition to the knowledge of the migratory routes of particular species, we have important evidence which may be considered to show that the area selected for the proposed refuge is isolated by Ipswich Bay from a considerable portion of the migratory movement along the coast. Fishermen often report large move ments of ducks off the Essex coast some 15 to 25 miles at sea, when there are no birds along the shore. At one time many migratory birds were killed by dashing against the lanterns of lighthouses, and the records concerning this phenomena have been reported by Dr. Townsend. It is revealing to note that no birds were reported as killed at Newburyport, Ipswich, or Annisquam Lights on the north shore of Cape Ann, nor at Eastern Point, Gloucester, Bakers Island, Hospital Point, Beverly, Marblehead, or Egg Rock Lights on the south shore. The records that Thatchers Island, off the end of Cape Ann, over a period of 20 years, do show large numbers of migratory birds killed, including many waterfowl. From this evidence we may conclude that ducks coming down from the Maine coast pass outside Cape Ann and avoid Ipswich Bay. It hardly seems logical to locate a migratory refuge in a region which is outside the migratory routes of all the geese, is not a concentration point for any of the ducks, and is even bypassed by the coastal flights of migratory waterfowl. There are at least a dozen places in New England that are of more importance to migratory routes than the Essex marshes. The Fish and Wildlife Service are either suffering under a misapprehension or are deliberately trying to create the impression that the Plum Island and Parker River region is a major concentration point for waterfowl during the fall migration. The Essex marshes are merely a fall and winter range for a population of black ducks. It is the only game species that gathers in numbers in the area. Any other species are either casual flocks that merely pass through the region in small numbers or are accidental visitors. They are here today and gone tomorrow. The black duck does gather in the fall in the area in numbers often exceeding 5,000 birds. Its habits and its needs for protection will be discussed in full under another heading. USE AS BREEDING AREA Among the claims made to justify the establishment of the refuge is the assertion that it will serve as a breeding area for black ducks, wood ducks and bluewinged teal. The writer hopes that the day will never come when ducks are raised and stocked for use as pheasant and trout are today. Pheasant shooting will never have the charm of grouse hunting, simply because the grouse is entirely a wild native bird. The idea of raising thousands of ducks in an enclosed area, to be turned loose to be shot afterward, has no appeal to the true sportsman. The gunners of Essex County are not asking the Fish and Wildlife Service to improve conditions for them, and we wonder why a game-raising program must be imposed on us at a cost of $500,000. Natural breeding cover, which is abundant in Essex County, could be improved at a fraction of this cost, without creating a sanctuary. It may be questioned, however, how successful such a program would be in the Parker River region. The blue-winged teal has never bred in this region in any numbers. Forbush says that he has never seen the species in spring in Massachusetts. Townsend reports gunners in the Essex marshes asking if the greenwinged teal was not the spring plumage of the blue-winged teal. In Wildlife Leaflet BS-158, issued by the Bureau of Biological Survey in April of 1940, only the black duck and the wood duck are listed as having an original or present breeding range extending into Massachusetts. The blue-winged teal is shown as a middlewest or western breeding bird except for a few "refugees" on sanctuaries in Maryland and Delaware. Even were the Fish and Wildlife Service able to lure enough blue-winged teal into the area to create a respective breeding population, it would be of no benefit to the gunners of the Essex County region. As has been demonstrated in the previous discussion of the blue-winged teal, they would all have left the region and gone south before the shooting season opened. New England gunners do not object to raising birds for the South, but they do object to being deprived of their own shooting for that purpose. Wood ducks could only be expected to utilize a very small part of the refuge. They would only breed along the wooded parts of the fresh-water streams. They are already breeding in large numbers and were probably more numerous during the fall of 1942 than the black duck. The installing of nesting boxes is the most that could be done to improve conditions, and it certainly is not necessary to make a sanctuary out of the region before that can be done. Moreover, it is to be questioned whether the wood duck will ever again become an important game species. It was the writer's impression that hunters were allowed to take one bird during the past season only to prevent wastage in those cases where a bird had been shot down by mistake. The writer did not feel that the ban on shooting these birds had been raised with the intention of encouraging hunters to pursue them. Anyone but a "game hog" will be satisfied with the permission to take one |