i-cv/ '1% •'Jte

^

^Hpl,

L > w.

^1^p**f

MONTANA FISH AND GAME DEPARTMENT

Official i\J: . . . : h^ Publication

i

State of Montana

John W. Bonner, Governor

MONTANA FISH AND GAME COMMISSION

Edward M. Boyes, Chairman
Walter Banka Thomas S. Morgan

William T. Sweet Manson H. Bailey, Jr

^ Robert H. Lambeth, Secretary

Montana's fishing resources, contained in 1500 lakes and more
than 15,000 miles of fishing streams, were meant for the enjoyment
of all its residents and the additional thousands of visitors who an-
nually participate in the sport of fishing.

Montanans have a characteristic friendliness which is but a re-
flection of the consideration and respect shown by others. However,
one careless individual can easily tip the sensitive balance of man-
agement regulations or perhaps destroy the more intangible favor of
Montana land holders' hospitality.

A good sportsman obeys not only the rules of nature and the
state but also exercises care, discretion and thoughtfulness for the
possessions of others. A good sportsman always realizes that fish-
ing, whether on public domain or private land, is not a right — it is a
privilege.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

VOLUME II No. 2

Marjorie Mitchell, Editor

The Life of a Game Commissioner 3

Hail and Farewell 4

Montana Sportsmen's Projects 6

The Life of a License 8

Those South of the Border Ducks 10

Montana Game Warden — On Duty 12

New Horizons For Goats 14

Glacier Park Conference 18

Pheasant Propagation In Montana 20

Fleet Feet , 23

Game Guardians of Gallatin Canyon 24

Summer Issue — 1952

Qo4ie/i Pacfe6.

Our fisherman's reward for his skill and patience is pictured
on the back cover. This fine catch was taken from the cool re-
cesses of the Madison River in the county of the same name. With
headwaters in Yellowstone National Park, the Madison River
stretches for 200 miles and provides some of the world's finest trout
fishing in its course to join the Missouri. Rainbow, loch leven,
brook and native cutthroat trout as well as grayling predominate
in its slow, easy water.

NG CO., HELEN,

What have I done. I ask, that I deserve such fate

I'm just a common fellow, but now let me relate
The trials and tribulations, the cares and worldly woes

The unkind salutations, that my Commission knows.
Say there, says one, "Go kill those birds, they're eatin' up my corn"

Another voice, "We want more birds": Why was I ever bom?
And if the fish ain't bitin', it's because there's none to bite.

Yet I know there's plenty of 'em, I can't give appetite.
And if the trees are buggy, and the weather isn't good.

It's because the Game Commission isn't doing all they could.
Says another brainy fellow. "Better set the season soon."

Jumps up another yippin'. "Set it late, or it's your doom."
You'll catch it if you do it. and you'll regret it if you don't.

You're a "bloomin' politician", if you will or if you won't.
Even for all acts of Nature, the Commission is to blame.

I don't know why I do it. but I love it just the same.
But we all keep workin'. anyway, for our birds and the fish.

'Cause down at heart, we all have got a common eager wish.
To see our State a garden spot of beauty, fish and game.

So tho' my job's a crazy quilt. I love it just the same.
Our hopes and dreams they're all the same no matter what your name

'Cause we all are aimin' upward, our target is the same.
So get on board my fellow man. in fact, let's all go fishin'

But please, dear sir, if they don't bite, don't blame the Game Commission.

— Paul T. Gilbert. Ouidoox Nebraska

JicUl and ^an^ew^ell

William Sweet's father arrived in
Montana via steamboat on the Mis-
souri River and after freighting by ox
team between Fort Benton and Vir-
ginia City for several years, he set-
tled on a ranch near Boulder where
Bill was born, August 13, 1885.

Following his graduation from
Boulder High School in 1900, Bill
Sweet entered t h e
wholesale grocery &
fruit business in Butte
where he remained
until his retirement in
1950.

He has always had
a keen interest in
William T. sweef Montana's fish and
game and for 15 years operated a
stock ranch and fish hatchery near
Wilder.

Most of his leisure time is spent in-
dulging his favorite hobby — "shoot-
ing" wildlife with his movie camera.
Many Montana sportsmen have seen
his film footage privately or at clubs.

His wife, Lulu, is an active sports-
woman and accompanies him on
most of his outdoor trips, bringing
in her own deer and elk every year.

Mr. Sweet is a member of the Butte
Masonic Lodge, Elks Club, Pioneer
Club, Chamber of Commerce, Rocky
Mountain Sportsmen's Club, Butte
Angler's Club, Butte Rod and Gun
Club, the Wholesale Grocers Asso-
ciation and is a charter member of
Butte Kiwanis.

One of the youngest commission-
ers ever appointed in Montana is 32
year old Manson H. Bailey, Jr.,
whose profound belief in the western
way of life and sincere concern for
the wildlife resources of the state
rival many other sportsmen with
more years' experience.

His deep interest in Montana's wel-
fare stems from his parents, both of
whom proved up homesteads near
Glasgow.

In the Glasgow high school, Mr.
Bailey was an active member of the
4-H Club and the Future Farmers of
America. From 1942 to 1946 he
served in the U. S. Army with the
83rd "Thunderbolt" Division.

In conjunction with his cattle
ranch, he is enrolled in the Veteran's
On-The-Farm training program.

He is a member of
t h e Valley Sports-
men's Asociation, a
supervisor and vice-
chairman of the
Nashua Soil Conser-
vation District, presi-
dent of the Valley
Ridgerunners Saddle ^°"'°" "• ^'"''"^
Club and past secretary-treasurer of
the Northeastern Montana Race As-
sociation.

His wife, Betty, readily acknow-
ledges his popularity with the young
people of Glasgow where he is a
member of the advisory council of
the F.F.A. chapter and instructor-
caller for a square dance class.

On April 11, 1952, William T. Sweet and Manson H. Bailey, Jr. were
appointed to succeed William Carpenter and Elmer Johnson as Montana Fish
and Game Commissioners.

This is our salute to these two former Commissioners for their accom-
plishments and a warm welcome to those who will now assist the other three
members of the Commission — Chairman Edward M. Boyes, Thomas S.
Morgan and Walter Banka — in formulating wildlife policies.

One of the best known sportsmen
in Montana and the western states
is Bill Carpenter of Butte. His is a
long and varied career over nearly
half a century devoted to wildlife res-
toration and includes
jf^***\ many "firsts" in fish

• [ and game conserva-

: tion.

He became interes-
ed in wildlife of the
state shortly after the
turn of the century

W. C. Carpenter i i ■ ■ i

when he jomed sev-
eral Butte sportsmen to help restore
grayling fishing in the Big Hole River.
This group became the Butte Angler's
Club in 1910. Mr. Carpenter held sev-
eral offices in this organization in-
cluding a 17-year term as president.

Among his past activities are the
first elk plant from Yellowstone Park
to Mount Fleecer, the first plant of
rainbow into the Big Hole River and
the introduction of fall spawning rain-
bow into Montana.

He was named "Sportsman of the
Year" by the Libby Rod and Gun
Club in 1951 and in June he was
accorded one of the highest honors
of the Western Association of State
Game and Fish Commissioners —
honorary life membership, awarded
only once before in the history of the
Association.

Elmer Johnson shares with Bill Car-
penter an eleven year record of Com-
missioner service, longest in the his-
tory of the Montana Fish and Game
Commission.

Appointed in 1941, shortly after the
Montana legislature granted broader
regulatory powers to the Commis-
sion, Johnston spearheaded wildlife
restoration projects to improve fish
and game resources in eastern Mon-
tana. He also served for six years as
Commission chairman.

Mr. Johnson, originally from Min-
nesota, attended
schools there and in
San Francisco before
establishing a plumb-
ing business in Glas-
gow. He expanded
this business into
several northern
Elmer jojinson Montona cities and

has handled many major plumbing
and heating contracts in the state.

He has long been active in Mon-
tana's sportsmen's groups, acting as
secretary for 15 years in the pioneer
Glasgow Fishing Club. He holds
memberships in the Valley Sports-
men's Association, Montana Wildlife
Federation and many civic organiza-
tions. As a Commissioner, he has
represented Montana at six national
wildlife conferences.

Montana Sportsmen's Projects

SECOND IN A SERIES

Within a fifty mile radius of Great
Falls are five roadside signs de-
signed to make the public aware of
Montana's fine wildlife species and
promote wise use of these resources.

These educational displays are the
result of an enthusiastic sportsmen's
club which enlisted the help of one
of Montana's outstanding wildlife
artists to illustrate in vivid portraits
some of the state's big game animals.

The Cascade County Sportsmen's
Association, under the direction of

its former president Ted Foss and
with the co-operation of Warden Sup-
ervisor Truce Emett, planned the
large attractive signs as a means of
carrying a conservation message.

Signs were to be rustic and carry
a short slogan, such as "Obey Your
Game Laws" or "Be Careful With
Fire" But above all, the project com-
mittee stressed "eye appeal" for the
signs.

To accomplish this, artist Les Peters
of Great Falls was asked to illus-

6

trate the signs with large color paint-
ings depicting various aspects of
Montana's wildlife,

Peters was keenly interested in the
project and agreed to donate his time
and skill toward making this educa-
tional effort a success. Under his deft
brush, five big game animals came
to life on the wooden signboards.
These boards are of two sizes, two by
four feet and three by five feet.

The animals — an elk, whitetailed
deer, big horn sheep and pheasant —
were artistically framed with natural

wooden posts by the Cascade County
sportsmen and placed along the high-
ways near Augusta, Cascade, Arm-
ington Junction, Sun River Canyon
and Choteau.

Now visitors and residents of the
state can see art, education and wild-
life combined to please the eye and
impress the memory.

Certainly to be commended for
this fine contribution are the Cascade
County sportsmen and artist Les Pet-
ers for an outstanding club project.

Many compliments have been received by the Cascade County Sportsmen's Association for
their series of wildlife signs placed along Montana highways. Two of the displays are shown

on this and the opposite page.

The Life of a License

Purchasing a hunting or fishing
license in Montana is a relatively
simple procedure. But the task of
mailing supplies of these licenses to
authorized dealers throughout the
state is a laborious operation.

Immediately after the close of the
Montana Fish and Game Depart-
ment's fiscal year on April 30, initial
shipments of new licenses are count-
ed by serial number and packaged.

Prior to actual assembly of packages, a mailing list is compiled v/hich
lists by receipt serial numbers and total number of each type of license every
dealer should receive, based on volume sales of the preceeding year.

Serial numbers oi every license must be
recorded. Above, Lucile Dunn (left) and
Marian Wutzke (right) assemble packages.

Licenses, mailed in heavy pasteboard boxes,

this year totaled 282,430 for all types. More

than 500 packages were prepared.

■^?«^-

9£^i

Package contents include licenses for resident bird and iish, resident big game, non-resident three-
day fishing, non-resident seasonal fishing, non-resident bird, non-resident big game and fishing as
■well as shipping permits, fishing regulation booklets, instructions to agents, application forms for cer-
tificates in lieu of lost licenses, fish and game code books and dealers' display signs.

8

in

v

|<iK^^HHB~*™i

it^£

H^H[

s^^^L

^^^HLj.^^Hn

NSHHHMI

^H^l

^^w.

T^ c

-r

3H

w^

•^

:fl

Bb

Hr

3b^

Margaret Jennings and Dave Dennis pile tho
packages higher and higher (above) because
all shipments must be held until a single
mailing can be made from the Helena ofiices.

Two truckloads of packaged licenses were
delivered at the Post Office to assure dealers
the impartiality of a simultaneous mailing. A
receipt for postal authorities completes the job.

All types of Montana hunting and fishing
licenses go on sale May 1 and may be pur-
chased from any authorized dealer, game
warden, warden supervisor or directly from
the Fish and Game Department in Helena.

Now equipped with license, rod. reel,
boots and boat, these fishermen (at
right) try their luck on the Yellow-
stone River. Today's legal limits for
both fishermen and hunters are
made possible by wise expenditure
of Montana's million dollar license
revenue in the management of Mon-
tana wildlife resources.

Those South of the Border Ducks

By Wynn

A January inventory has been used
for a number of years to determine
the number and welfare of continen-
tal waterfowl populations. The United
States Fish and Wildlife Service di-
rects this operation and assembles
data from the various states and co-
operating private agencies which
carry out the census.

Information is used to determine
what effect the hunting season had
on the overall waterfowl population.
In addition, it serves as a guide for
number of birds that can be expected
on the breeding grounds.

Because a major portion of North
America's waterfowl spend the win-
ter months in Mexico, it has become
the problem of the federal govern-
ment to count these birds.

During the most recent inventory,
completed in January of this year,
the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service
sent its capable pilot-biologist, Robert
Smith, to direct the activities of the
census takers and fly the plane over
the water areas. Dr. A. Starker Leo-
pold of the University of California
represented the Duck Hunters Asso-
ciation of California and the author,
Wynn Freeman, who is the waterfowl
biologist for the Montana Fish and
Game Department, represented state
game departments of the eleven
western states.

This trio left California in a twin-
engine amphibian plane on lanuary
4, 1952, to count ducks in Mexico.
The survey covered the waterfowl

10

G. Freeman

wintering areas along the west coast
and the highland lake areas of cen-
tral Mexico. A different team cen-
sused the area along the east coast
of Mexico at the same time.

Obviously, every duck in Mexico
could not possibly be counted, so a
special effort was made to equalize
the intensity of the survey over the
same areas on a year to year basis.

As the census crew proceeded
along the coast, it was easy for them
to see why waterfowl fly to Mexico
for the winter. The air was balmy
and most important of all, there was
an abundance of water along the
interior coastline. However the birds
seemed to congregate on certain
specific areas. Even the various
species preferred one water area over
another. The pintails appeared to
congregate and prefer the agricultur-
al section around Obregon. Another
area was called "Shoveller Heaven"
by the pilot as well it could have
been for more than 100,000 shovellers
were counted there. An area near
Acapulco was occupied by over 75,-
000 ruddy ducks. These same species,
however, were also observed scat-
tered throughout the entire course of
the census.

Pintail, shovellers and scaup made
up 67 percent of the birds observed
during the census, the remaining 33
percent were teals, baldpates, gad-
walls and the various diving ducks.
Noticeably absent were the mallards

and Canadian geese. These species
winter north of Mexico and were seen
only in very small numbers south ol
the border. The goose population in
Mexico was made up almost entirely
of white-fronted and snow geese.

After the totals were compared, it
was determined that a slight increase
in winter duck population had been
made over the previous year and the
goose population of Mexico was
about the same as last year. Most c!
these birds migrate in the Pacific
Flywoy.

Some inquiry was made into the
waterfowl hunter regulations of Mex-
ico which are improving steadily.
Unfortunately, U. S. newspapers and
magazines have given considerable
amounts of unfavorable -publicity to
reports of excessive waterfowl kills
in Mexico.

Actually, the Mexican harvest of

wintering ducks is negligible. Various
estimates show that the total water-
fowl kill for one season in Mexico
did not exceed 150,000 birds. In ad-
dition, an estimated 90 percent of
these birds were taken by transient
hunters from the United States. The
average individual Mexican is not
a waterfowl hunter primarily because
he is not in a financial position to
pursue ducks as a sport or a hobby.
The Mexican Game Department
has been a small organization in the
past but their sincere effort at low
enforcement is having a perceptible
effect. Their efforts are due for a
considerable boost in the near future
as the Government of Mexico has
authorized a sizeable increase in the
game department budget. With this
increase, violations by their own
citizens as well as visiting hunters
are expected to be cut to a minimum.

How many ducks do you see on Ninepipe Reservoir below? The U. S. Fish and Wildlife
Service census crew, assigned a similar problem on the Mexican wintering grounds oi water-
fowl, simplified counting by aerial surveys.

11

Often assisted by sportsmen, 'wardens stc

A helping hand for ranchers in fencing haystacks
to prevent game from damaging domestic forage.

• -v^

Although salt for game species is usually dropped
from airplanes, this important mineral is occasion-
ally packed on foot into remote areas.

Trained dogs assist the warden in tracking down predatory animals
which menace livestock and game animals.

MONTANA GAME

Many people think of gcane ward
of apprehending violators of fish and
picture story presents some of the m
are also in the routine of Montana's
division. In addition to the activities
warden assignments include recordir
men, school children and other inter<
operation of checking stations.

Confiscated game meat, taken illegally by unsc

for st

I'litana streams with hatchery reared ilsh.

mRDENS

Oi.^

r

'-^t"^

^nly in the capacity

le regulations. This |, I ^

F other duties which BJ,6.

i.e law enforcement Mi

flvn on these pages, -*

r.ldlife conditions, meeting with sports-

: groups to promote conservation and

— All photos courtesy Ernst Peterson, Hamilton.

: us hunters, is sold at auction by game wardens
venue.

Beaver damage reported to the game •warden result:
in transplanting this industrious little animal.

Game animals sometimes die from natural iactoi

and game ^wardens assist biologists in determinin

cause of death and take remedial measures.

'Hunting" with binoculars is one way to study the habits of
virtually inaccessible mountain goats.

^ ^

'^1\

Itccu 'i¥<ncf<m^ ^<n (^<Mt^

By Ken Thompson

Mountain goats, Montana's agile
masters of the crags and cliffs are
being literally "lifted" from their
native homes and "dropped" into
new regions.

This project which is in its 12th
year is part of Montana's Wildlife
Restoration Program to distribute
game species into all parts of the
state where food, cover and other
conditions are suitable. Practically
all of the state's game species have
been captured and transplanted but
in no species is the element of danger
and excitement greater than in the
mountain goat trapping operations.

While Montana's efforts to build
up the populations of Rocky Moun-
tain goats are relatively new, the

14

real reason for the work starts cen-
turies ago. Somewhere back in the
dark geological ages, the group of
mountain - frequenting antelope, of
which the European chamois and
the Rocky Mountain goat are mem-
bers, developed. In the course of
their development, the various family
branches became residents of dif-
ferent parts of the world, and in North
America, the genus Oreomnos be-
came established. Actually this ani-
mal is not a goat but has been so
named because of its resemblance
to the familiar barnyard animal.

By the time the whiteman started
pushing west. Rocky Mountain goats
had spread out over the northern
portions of the Continental Divide

and occupied such niches in this
mountain chain as were good goat
habitat. However, many isolated
mountain ranges in Montana had all
of the characteristics of goat habitat —
but no goats.

It is believed that the broad flat
valleys and prairies between these
mountain spurs may have been fac-
tors in discouraging, if not prohibit-
ing, the natural migration of goats to
new areas.

Opportunity To Help Nature

Here in these goatless areas ex-
isted an opportunity — a challenge to
game managers to step in and help
Nature meet the increasing demand
by sportsmen for more and more
game. The challenge was accepted
by the Montana Fish and Game De-
partment in 1940 and initial efforts
to procure and transplant Rocky
Mountain goats were started.

R. F. "Bob" Cooney, director of
Montana's Wildlife Restoration Pro-
gram, was in charge of the state's
first goat transplanting project.

After harrowing escapes while at-
tempting to capture young goats in
their cliff homes, the crew decided a
trap was the only answer. So tools
and wire were loaded on pack horses
and they headed for the mountain
goat range.

The trap was constructed at a site
selected around a "lick" where moun-
tain goats came each year seeking
some form of mineral in the native
clay. With some experimentation, it
was found that goats could be enticed
into the trap by using regular block
salt.

In this manner the first goats were

trapped. Then, enclosed in special
crates, the captured animals were
packed by horses and mules over
tortuous mountain trails to the valleys
below and trucked to their new
homes — a trip requiring two full days
and nights.

The Montana Fish and Game De-
partment was now in the goat trap-
ping business. But like all good busi-
nesses, it expanded and grew, more
efficient methods were needed, new
populations of goats had to be
tapped.

Most promising of the state's goat
ranges was the rugged, primitive Bob
Marshall Wilderness area. But here
the job of transplanting the animals
looked almost impossible for it meant
three days by horseback to haul
captured animals to a road. So new
ways and means had to be devised
and the entire Wildlife Restoration
Division of the Montana Fish and
Game Department went to work on
the problem.

Special Equipment

With the specially designed equip-
ment constructed by Department shop
foreman Rex Smart, a four man crew,
headed by biologist Lloyd "Mac"
MacDowell and field technician Jim
McLucas, headed into the back coun-
try. Deep into the headwaters of the
South Fork of the Flathead they
brought their pack string loaded with
wire, tools and camping equipment.
Where the Little Salmon river empties
into the Flathead, they constructed
their trap, a contrivance of mesh wire
and native lodgepole.

It was about twenty feet square,
eight feet high and was built around

15

Before being crated for their journey to a new
home, goats are tied securely and a section
of rubber hose slipped over their horns to
prevent injury to themselves or the crew. A
sedative keeps the animals quiet.

a natural "lick." White salt blocks
were placed in the finished trap and
these proved irresistible to the
shaggy mountaineers. Goats were
caught as they had been back in
1940, but this time something new
was added. This was the collapsible
life rafts and small, but powerful, air-
craft which added a modern touch.

Special permission was obtained
from the United States Forest Service
to land a non-government plane on
the closed airports of the wilderness
area. Plans were now complete to
give Mr. Mountain Goat the full treat-
ment by land, by water and by air.

Let's follow this crew on a thrill-
packed journey with a cargo of goats.

The trap is set up. A wire trigger
release for the hinged gate is attach-
ed near a salt block. During the night
a small group of goats enter the open
gates seeking blocks of salt. One of
them stumbles over the wire releas-
ing the gates and they are captured.

At daybreak, the crew finds them

with shining horns lowered defiantly.
As the men approach, the captive
animals stomp their feet and move
forward threateningly. Great care
must be taken for one sharp thrust
of those dagger points could be fatal.

Cautiously, one of the crew selects
a goat and with a quick flip of a rope
or by "taking the goat by the horns"
a captive is secured. The struggling
animal is carried outside the trap
where it is blindfolded, hobbled with
heavy leather straps and a section
of rubber garden hose is slipped over
the horns. This serves as a conven-
ient handle and eliminates the dan-
ger of goring.

Now modern medicine enters the
picture. Biologist McDowell, using
a hypodermic needle, carefully ad-
ministers sodium pentabarbital and
Mr. Oreamnos slips off into goat
slumberland.

Goats are then lowered into light
aluminum crates which are lashed
in place in the center of the collaps-
ible raft for the goats must not get

Collapsible rubber boats transport mountain

goats from the trap to a wilderness landing

field and transplanting operations continue

by airplane.

16

wet. Jim McLucas, veteran of many
marine landings, takes the helm and
they shove off into the snow-swollen
current of the mighty Flathead.

The craft swirls down the stream
past submerged boulders and snags,
through narrow gorges with its crew
guiding it down the six miles to Black
Bear in thirty spray-soaked minutes.
At the Black Bear
landing point, the
raft is brought to an-
chor. An ingenious
cart is unfolded and
all the goats, still dry,
are trundled about
one-quarter of a mile
to the air strip.

goat-wise
domain.

to investigate their new

An airplane, called
by short-wave radio,
is standing by. Goats
are loaded into the
plane and it noses its
way out of the deep
wilderness canyons.

With this new pro-
cedure the captured goats are re-
moved from their home, boated down
the river, flown out to another air-
port where pickup trucks await them
for final delivery to their new home
— all in a matter of a few hours.

At the designated sites, the white-
bearded passengers are released as
the sedative injected at the trap has
by now worn off. The goats look
around skeptically, then amble off

Over 150 mountain goats have
been laboriously captured in Mont-
ana. Several new areas have been
successfully established. The most
successful one to date has been in
the Crazy Mountains where an orig-
inal plant of twenty-two goats has
increased to an esti-
mated 125 animals.
Other releases have
been made in the
Beartooth Plateau,
Spanish Peaks, Gates
of the Mountains.

Fifteen were sent
as far as Colorado in
exchange for an
equal number of that
Stat e's bighorn
sheep.

What does all this
mean to the sports-
men everywhere?

Near the end of the line, goats are re- First a Valuable
moved from the plane and loaded into .

trucks for the last few miles to the trophy animal IS

release site. stocked in oreos they

probably would never reach without
man's help. Second, this increase in
habitat may be the salvation of a
species which seems to be holding its
own by a narrow margin.

So if a strong-lunged climber of
this or a future generation finds a
majestic mountain goat in the finder
of his camera or the cross hairs of
his 'scope, he can thank the rugged
lads who have "lifted" these animals
from their native home and "drop-
ped" them into an even better one.

17

Glacier Park Conference

For the first time in more than two decades, Montana played host to
representatives of fish and game departments of eleven western states and
the western Canadian provinces when the Western Association of State
Game and Fish Commissioners selected Glacier National Park as the site for
their 32nd annual conference. These annual meetings are designed to bring
together technical men in administrative, wildlife and fisheries fields for dis-
cussions of latest techniques, problems and trends in game and fish manage-
ment. Presented here are a few of the highlights of the June, 1952 conclave.

Montana's Wildlife Restoration Director Bob Cooney and Marjorie Mitchell (above) admire the
quiet setting of Swiftcurrent Lake and Many Glacier Chalet, locale of the three-day meeting.

Montana Game Warden and 1951 president
of the Western Association R. H. Lambeth
(left) and Glacier Park Superintendent J. W.
Emmert (center) welcomed guests to the Treas-
ure State. At right is Ben Glading, Associa-
tion secretary from California.

18

Montana's Governor John W. Bonner extended
an official state welcome to conferees and
later talked informally (above) with western
Outdoor Writers who met at the same time.
Shown are writers Joe Mears, John Willard,
G. W. Philpott and Governor Bonner.

Sampling juicy bits of young Montana buffalo
at the barbecue sponsored by the Montana
Wildlife Federation are (left to right) Carl
Shoemaker, National Wildlife Federation di-
rector; Dick Wagner and Al Reigel, Montana
Federation officials and Chef Lou Hoffman.

The importance of public relations to inform
sportsmen of new fish and game concepts was
told by Fish and Wildlife Assistant Director of
Public Information Jack Culbreath of Wash-
ington, D. C. Seated is Commissioner Frank
Butler, Vancouver, British Columbia.

— Photo by Roahen

-Photo by Roahen

"Who Said The Land Grab Is Dead?" asks
C. R. "Pink" Gutermuth, vice president of
the Wildlife Management Institute. His talk
presented views on the public lands problem
experienced by many states. Seated is Com-
missioner Frank Butler.

California's Game and Fish Director Seth
Gordon introduces Panel Chairman Frank
Butler; Willis King of the U. S. Fish and
Wildlife Service who spoke on fisheries; and
Albert M. Day, Fish and Wildlife director who
reported on waterfowl management.

As the three-day conference neared completion, delegates were feted with a banquet (below.)
Exceptionally fine after-dinner entertainment was presented by the Montana State University

School of Music.

— Photo by Roahen

Pheasant Propagation in Montana

By William R. Bergeson

The history of the pheasant in
Montana dates back to 1895 when
interested individuals released birds
obtained primarily from Oregon into
several areas in the western portion
of the state.

It was not until 1929, when the first
game bird farm was established at
Warm Springs, that impetus was
given to large-scale pheasant propa-
gation. By the following year 6,146
birds were distributed to every one of
Montana's 56 counties. By 1938, the
second game bird farm went into
operation at Billings and in 1942, the
third and last game bird farm was
completed at Fort Peck.

In the intervening years since 1929,
the three State Game Farms have
liberated a total of 452,334 pheasants.
Counties receiving the largest num-
bers of birds have been Cascade,
Flathead, Yellowstone and Ravalli
with 13,000 birds each.

Production Peak

In 1947, total production for all
farms reached a peak with 46,500
birds, but since that time the empha-
sis has been on better quality and
production is held to about 10,000
birds at each farm.

Broodstock for the current year's
operation is selected from the pro-
ceeding year's production and held
over the winter at each farm. These
birds are placed in large pens at a
ratio of one cock to six hens. Nor-
mally, hen pheasants will start lay-

20

ing eggs around the first of April and
full egg production is underway by
the middle of that month. One hen
will produce approximately 40 eggs
through a two-month laying period.
Incubators and Brooders

Most of the game farm pheasants
are hatched in incubators and raised
in brooders. After hatching in the in-
cubator, the chicks are confined in
brooder houses. When they are ten
days old, the doors leading to the
large wire-enclosed pens are opened
and the chicks are allowed to forage
but are herded back and confined to
the brooder houses each night.

After the fourth week, artificial heat
under the hovers in each brooder
house is discontinued unless the
weather is unusually cold. By the
time the chicks are six weeks old they
are more or less on their own and
free to v^ander and forage in pens.

When the chicks are ten weeks
old, they are caught, crated and
moved to the release site within the
district served by each of the farms.

The budget for the three game
farms, which includes costs of opera-
tion and salaries, was $59,500.00 last
year.

When 30,000 pheasants are pro-
duced, reared to ten weeks of age
and liberated, the cost will be about
$1.98 per bird.

Out of every 100 game farm-reared
cock pheasants, how many end their
days at the business end of a hunt-

er's shotgun?

Banding studies conducted over the
state for several years have shown
that returns range from a state-wide
3.5 percent to 41 percent in areas
where individual releases were fol-
lowed closely. Returns vary from
these low percentages to higher num-
bers depending on the time elapse
between release and hunting season.
Gallatin Valley Study

A detailed small scale study was
conducted in the Gallatin Valley dur-
ing the years 1948-50 which indicated
a 14.4 percent return of released
cocks based on band returns secured
at hunter checking stations, hunter
reports and trapping.

Ordinarily, about a 30 percent har-
vest is the highest return ever secured
on ten week old pheasants planted in
August on the best pheasant range
where wild birds are already found.

Of the 15,000 cock pheasants re-
leased annually in the various cov-
ers of the state, less than 4,500 of
them found their way into the hunt-
er's bag if the 30 percent return fig-
ure is accepted. During the 1950 sea-
son, an estimated 21 1,250 cock pheas-
ants were bagged. If it is assumed
that each one of the 15,000 cocks re-
leased during the summer and early
fall of 1950 was shot by a hunter,
then it is evident that game farm
pheasants contributed only .07 per-
cent to the total kill.

Even on a bargain-price basis of
$1.98 per bird, it can easily be seen
that it is not economical to artificially
propagate pheasants in quantities
that will assure a bag limit of three
or four cocks to every hunter holding

a $3.00 Resident Game Bird and Fish-
ing License. With facts proving that
it takes from three to seven cocks
planted to return one to the hunter's
bag, the costs rocket to $6.00 to
$14.00 for each cock bagged directly
from farm planting.

When the game farm releases
which contribute about 4,500 birds to
the bag out of the 15,000 cocks re-
leased annually are compared to the
total take of over 200,000 pheasants,
the importance of natural or wild re-
production cannot be over-empha-
sized.

There are no accurate figures
available on the survival of game
farm reared hen pheasants because
the best source of information is
through analysis of hunter checking
station data and this source is obvi-
ously unavailable for the legally pro-
tected hen.

Pheasants Like a Crop

Pheasants, like any other crop, are
a direct product of the land and ore
directly dependent on the carrying
capacity of their range or habitat.
Once game farm reared pheasants
have been successfully introduced
into suitable areas and have become
established, there is no need to con-
tinually release more birds into these
same areas year after year because
the range or habitat will support only
so many birds and no more.

Even if the habitat seems to pro-
vide all the requirements needed for
pheasant survival, how much can be
accomplished with artificially reared
pheasants? In the first place, it must
be remembered that the numbers of
birds that are supplied for stocking

21

are very small in comparison with
the numbers already present in the
wild. If there is already a sparse
population, does it help to add to it
by releasing more birds? The answer
is No. If the habitat will support only
the number of birds present, then no
amount of stocking would build such
an area up to a point comparable to
areas providing good habitat.

To continually pour more birds into
an area already well-stocked with
wild birds, or into areas where the
carrying capacity is limited, is much
the same as pouring water into a full
bucket. The only solution is to make
the bucket bigger.

Populations Flucucrte

Pheasant populations have been
and always will be in a continued
state of fluctuation as a result of such
uncontrolled factors as changes in
land use, winter weather conditions
and weather conditions during the
critical nesting period. Land use
changes are well-illustrated by the
depression period of the 1930s and
the attendant closures of farm lands
which had a major effect on pheasant
numbers. As a result of farm crop
curtailment, large blocks of land were
removed from production on most
farms in pheasant producing areas.

Unharvested grain, sweet clover
and weed fields provided ideal cover
for pheasants and they reached all-
time highs in numbers by the early
1940s. Conditions changed rapidly
during World War II when nearly all
restrictions on agriculture were re-
moved and increasing amounts of
land were brought into production.

As a result, many areas such as the
Yellowstone Valley where pheasants
were formerly so abundant that spe-
cial seasons were held to reduce
damage, former populations levels
have never been duplicated.

What Is The Answer?

If large scale propagation pro-
grams do not provide the pheasant
hunter's Utopia, what is the solution?
Probably the answer lies in pheasant
habitat improvement.

Here again the limiting factor is
cost, and it must be recognized that
habitat improvement is costly as
well as slow in producing results al-
though these results when achieved
ore permanent in nature. Vast tree-
less areas east of the Continental Di-
vide, where all the requirements for
pheasants are met with the exception
of permanent winter cover, could be
improved with the addition of shelter-
belts and wildlife plantings. In addi-
tion, the future prospects of new irri-
gation projects such as the lower
Marias will provide thousands of
of acres of potential pheasant habitat.

Can game farms ever be elim-
inated from the pheasant production
picture? The swing of the pendulum
which is forcing more and more of
the burden of pheasant production
back to nature does not signify that
the game farm system will not be
with us for many years.

Game farms will always be need-
ed to restock areas where natural
disasters have dangerously lowered
the existing broodstock and improved
habitat areas will need introductions.

22

Gne of Montana's finest big game
tiophiies is the pronghorn buck. Hunt-
ers can easily distinguish bucks frow.
does because the male antelope has
much larger horns, darker face mask
and dark markings below the ear.

Careful management plus the friend-
ly influence of Montana ranchers has
returned our antelope from near ex-
tinction to today's herds numbering
more than 50,000 animals. First
major permit hunt allowed 750 ante-
lope to be harvested in 1943. This
year 18,070 permits will be issued.

^M-4^

Twin fawns are more common than

single births and triplets have been

observed.

'Son, believe me, it's nice just to see them around the country again."

23

Fred Williams (above), pioneer sportsman with over fifty years experience in the Gallatin
Canyon, has been continuous chairman of the Gallatin Conservation Committee since its

formation twenty years ago.

Game Guardians of Gallatin Canpn

by Bob

Twenty years ago, a war was
waged in the Gallatin Canyon. Bat-
tlelines were clearly draA^/"n — game
versus livestock. Each side had
strong supporters armed with plenty
of arguments.

The issue centered on a major elk
herd which was being maintained in
the Canyon, on rangeland long used
by cattle and sheep.

The two interests had clashed
headon and no one seemed able to
come up with a solution. After a
meeting of three days and most of
two nights, the deadlock still held
and tempers drew taut.
. It was at that point that the forma-

24

Cooney

tion of a committee was suggested
which would have representation
from all the interested groups: sports-
men, ranchers, summer home own-
ers, dude ranchers, Forest Service,
Park Service, a railroad company
which owned every other section in
a portion of the Canyon and the Fish
and Game Department. The group
that was formed was called the Gal-
latin Conservation Committee.

Its primary function was to solve
the immediate problem of how do-
mestic and game animals could
share this range. However, under
the able leadership of Fred Williams
of Bozeman, this group not only un-

tangled the snarled stockman-sports-
man quarrel, but has gone on to aid
in working out complicated game
problems in their area as they have
arisen ever since.

During these twenty years, the
group has met each spring and early
fall. In the spring, a field check is
made to determine the use by elk of
critical winter forage. In the early
fall, three days are spent on horse-
back riding over the important
ranges. Sportsmen, ranchers, game
technicians, forest and park rangers
pool their opinions to come up with
recommendations for the best man-
agement of the wildlife resources of
the Canyon.

The highest compliment yet paid to
this organization has been the forma-
tion of several groups in the state
modeled after it. Ten years ago the

Assoraka Conservation Committee
was formed and has been working
with the many complex problems
surrounding the huge Northern Yel-
lowstone elk herd.

Down on the Clark Fork, another
group has been active for nearly as
many years and a fourth was formed
in the Bitterroot. In addition to these,
several inquiries have been received
from neighboring western states
where this idea is now being tried.

There must be something pretty
sound in the whole plan that was
born in Bozeman many years ago.
Two factors seem most important in
explaining the continued success of
these committees. First, they repre-
sent a cross-section of the groups
vitally interested and second, they
get out into the field to delve into the
problems at their source.

Below, members of the Gallatin Conservation Committee ride over Shedhorn on the Gallatin-
Madison divide on their early fall inspection trip.

r^%

HELEN ETTP^GE:?, Ll32^RlkU
SCHOOL OF FORESTRY
MONTAIiA STATE U:nVE:^SITY
MISSOULA, MO:iTANA 6

Sec. 34.66, P. L. & R.
V. S. POSTAGE

PAID

Permit No. 50
Helena, Montana

)iiS.W