Public information bulletin [1950]

~-GEORGIA GAME and

FJSB COMMISSION

Public Information Bulletin

Number 1

1949-50

I give my pledge tJS an American to save and faithfully to defend from waste the natural resources of my country- its soil and minerals, its forests, waters, and wildlife.

STATE OF GEORGIA
HERMAN E. TALMADGE, Governor
GEORGIA GAME AND FISH COMMISSION

Published annually by the Georgia Game and Fish Commission 412 Stote Capitol, Atlanta, Georgia

J. R. HOLLAND. J. C. CALHOUN. HAMILTON RALLS

Chairman Director
Assistant Director

JULY, 1949

CONTENTS

The Game and :Fish Commission __ ________ _

Foreword- by J. C. Calhoun

_- ___ ..

The Value of Wildlife- by J. R. Holland .........

Fishing- by Pierce Harris _ ----- ---

Hatchery Division- by C. C. James ....... __ __________ _________

--------- 5 7 9
-------- ----- 11 ------------ ................ 13

Predators of the Bob White Quail

______ ------- -------- --------- ------ .... 17

Fish Hatcheries _----------

-------- ---- ---- 25

Management of Fish Ponds______ __ ___ _______________ ------ --------- _ ------------- ------ 27

Restocking Old Ponds

______________ ------------ -------- 27

Fertilizing the Pond.. __________ _______ ________ _________

_

.........................

..... 29

The Role of the Enforcement Officer- hy W. H. Hodges---------------- ___ ---- --- 31

The Importance of Information and Education -by Ed Friend ..

---------- -- 37

License Fees for 1949-1950 Season -------------

____ ---- - ---------- - 41

"It Is Unlawful"........... ----- __ --------- __

------ -

--- - -- 43

Hunting and Trapping Regulations...

---------

. ____ 45

Fishing Regulations ........ --------- ---- ------------------

-------- _ . 53

Shad Fish Regulations ......... ---- _____ --------------- .... ---- _ 55

Salt Water Regulations __________ --------------------_

56

Game Management Areas 1949 Fishing Schedule .... --- . ______ ........ ------ 57 and 82

The License Division- by Tom Sanders___

. ----- ------- -------- _____ 58

Federal Aid Division- by Thos. H. Jones_ --------

---------

-------- 59

Federal Aid Projects

-------

63

Georgia's Coastal Fisheries- by J. ::'\olan \\'ells. Supervisor______

71

Fishing Sites in Georgia _ . _________ ............... ______ ---- ....

_______ ----

77

Georgia's Coastal Area

--------- ____ ______

__ _ __ ___ ____

85

The ~farshes of Glynn

!G

When Sidney Lanier Faced Death ...

Si

Why Protection Is ::'\ecessary- by Dr. A. J. Kilpatrick ... ___ -------- . ___ _________

88

COVER PHOTO- The Chattahoochee Forest in the !\fountains of North Georgia. Here some 150,000 acres have been set aside as Game Management Areas and restocked with deer, turkev and trout. For the past few years, these areas ha,e been included among the choice hunting and fishing sites in the state. This picture and all others in this booklet. except as noted, are by Staff Photographer Ed Friend.

Lost Creek in Rabun County, near Clayton.

THE GAME AND FISH COMMISSION AND THE DIRECTOR

The Commission is a constitutional body, responsible only to the legislature and the Governor.

Eleven in number - one from each Congressional District - the members of the Commission are appointed by the Governor for staggered terms of seven years and the commission in turn appoints the Director.

At the present time the Commissioners are as follows:

J. R. HoLLAND, Chairman .
E. V. KoMAREK, Vice-Chairman CLABUS LLOYD, Secretary
w. C. ELLIS.
GuY RuTLA:'\D .
WALTER '"'AI="JWRIGHT . RoY McGI:\ITY, JR..
.JAMES F. DARBY, JR. .
HUGH HILL .
WALLACE GRAY .
LEONARD BASSFORD .
J. C. CALHOUN, Director.
HAMILTON RALLS, Assistant Director.

Thunderbolt, Ga. Thomasville, Ga.
Gainesville, Ga. Hazlehurst, Ga.
Decatur, Ga. Butler, Ga.
Chatsworth, Ga. Vidalia, Ga. Macon, Ga. Newnan, Ga. Augusta, Ga. Macon, Ga.
Hogansville, Ga.

The heads of the various departments and all employees are appointed by the Director on the approval of the Commission. The Director is a bonded state official and directs the entire program, which is established and ways and means approved for its operation, by the Board of Commissioners at regular meetings called for these purposes.

5

FOREWORD
By
J. C. CALHOUN, Director
We of the Game and Fish Commission wonder how many citizens of our State are viewing the conservation picture clearly. We are afraid that too many of our people take too much for granted. Long years of easy access to a mint of natural wealth has bred an indifference to say the least. It is hard to view conservation with sincerity when we have always had acres and acres of gameinhabited forests, with lakes, creeks, and rivers filled with fish, and a coast line that is part of the greatest deep-sea fishing area in North America. But we must realize that even the richest can be bankrupted by wasteful spending.
Doubtless some are old enough to remember when there was a , "dove shoot'' in the community. Kids went along with wash tub3 to bring back the kill, and coveys of quail could be found along most any hedge row. Those clays are gone forever. We in Georgia are at a conservation cross road. vVe must choose between programs that will mean eventual feast or eventual famine. The decision is not up to the Game and Fish Commission, nor the Governor, nor any succession of Governors. It is up to the people.
No agency or administration can be more effective than the people choose to make them. Too many Georgia citizens continue to wink at game law violations. Nature deeded our wildlife property to all of us and we should all help protect it. In thinking about our wildlife population, the word restoration should become as significant as the word conservation. Our wildlife must be restored as well as protected. To do this favorable conditions for their propagation and development must be established.
The Georgia Game and Fish Commission is committed to these programs of restoration and protection. The money paid in for fishing and hunting licenses is used only for these purposes, and this is the only money available to the Commission for these purposes, since no money from any other source is appropriated.
vVe earnestly solicit the assistance and influence of all Georgians in a state-wide effort to restore and conserve our fish and wildlife assets.
7

Who wouldn't love a day in the field with this boy1

THE VALUE OF WILDLIFE
By ]. R. HOLLAND, Chairman
Why all the consideration for our wildlife? vVho cares what happens to wild animals as long as man gets what he wants?
The basis of our nation's wealth is its Natural Resources- soils, minerals, forests, and wildlife. If these resources are not consistently protected and used wisely there will come a time when this country will not be worth defending.
Many of the values of our wildlife resources cannot be measured directly in dollars and cents. Whether we continue to live is not so important unless we can maintain a world worth living in.
With increased populations and improved machinery there is bound to be more surplus time for increasingly large numbers of people during normal times. If we can continue to furnish constructive recreation for these idle hours, we as a people will remain wholesome and contented.
Under a proper program of restoration and protection, our woods, fields, streams and coast line will furnish pleasant, wholesome, and profitable use of such surplus time.
Game, fish, birds, and wild plants are as important to the individual as they are to the nation as a whole. Those who have hunted or fished, hiked, paddled a boat, or stalkd the woods and fields, know full well what we mean. These activities give a lift and purpose to life.
It is much more difficult and expensive to bring back a nearly extinct wildlife population than it is to conserve and rebuild while there is a fair supply left. It is time now to begin the task of rebuilding and the only way is by restoration and protection.
The Department of Game and Fish cannot do the job alone. It must have the cooperation of every Georgian. Can we count on you?
9

"Fishzng is a disease."

FISHING
By
PIERCE HARRIS
Fishing is not a sport- it's a disease. When the germ gets in a man's blood it's like a tropical fever. He'll go along for months with no signs that it is there - then, all of a sudden, and for no reason at all, other than the sunshine is bright, the soft spring breezes whisper through the willows, the poplar buds are bursting, birds sing in the tree tops, and rippling waters sing a siren song as they slide across the rocks, he'll throw down everything and - go fishing.
It will affect a man's morals too. Like the man who weighed the new baby at his house on his fishing scales and it weighed 32 pounds.
It destroys all respect for the rights and comforts of others. He'll get up before day, blunder around over the house knocking over furniture, grab up the family's best coffee pot, take all the bacon they were planning to have for breakfast, and before he gets away, wake up every member of the household. He'll come back home 'way after dark grumpy and tired, and when asked if the fish were biting, he'll growl, ''If they were they were biting each other- they wouldn't touch a thing I threw at 'em."
Nevertheless, no. other pastime exemplifies the adage "Hope springs eternal in the human breast" like fishing. They will surely bite tomorrow if it is not a day too soon or too late.
Then too- it may be that ultimate truth lies in the spiritual attitude of the Georgians who are always going fishing. A person who has achieved an immunity from the everlasting inner demand that he improve upon his earthly position must possess an unusual degree of cosmic equilibrium. He must have learned in some way that composure of the human spirit is all that actually matters. He has attained, without conscious effort, the serenity for which all men strive. Activity - as he perhaps knows through some instinctive realization - is but a confession that peace is unendurable.
11

Around the edges of fields where there is feed and cover is the place to find Bob White quail. What a dog!

HATCHERIES DIVISION
C. C. JAMES OF MARIETTA, GA., Chief
BOB WHITE QUAIL HATCHERY
Our one quail hatchery is located near Chamblee, Ga. We have now about 370 pairs of birds paired off for this laying season. Mr. James expects these birds to produce about 6,000 eggs, which will be distributed over the State to 4H Club boys and girls for hatching and release.
Food and cover are fundamental requirements for Bob White quail and these must be in close proximity - such as is furnished by thickets and brush areas -with some open vegetation fields for nesting and roosting.
The birds normally feed only around the edges of fields because they fear to venture far from thicket cover. Hence, it is obvious that efforts to increase the number of quail in a given area will depend upon the development of feeding grounds in close proximity to adequate cover. It is useless to plant quail where these conditions do not exist, for they will not survive.
A farmer has one of his best opportunities to encourage quail and other wild animals on strips of land where cropfields border on woodlands. Where a field lies next to the woods, a shaded strip along the border usually yields little in the way of crops. In fact, working that border and applying seed and fertilizer from year to year is largely a waste of money.
A border of legumes - such as bicolor lespedeza or serecia planted in such a situation will be useful and will improve conditions for quail and other wild life. About one-eighth of an acre of this kind of plantings will support one average covey. Plantings of this kind can be made to advantage, in 30- to 40-foot strips through woodlands.
A heavily grazed pasture is usually a poor place for birds to nest, but pastures can be made to serve wildlife favorably. Small units of cover - rock piles, wooded spots, brier thickets, and other thicket areas should be fenced off so cattle cannot destroy cover and feed.
13

A "living" fence around the pasture is probably the best single measure that can be used. Nearly every one knows that brushy fence lines provide good wildlife cover and we have recently learned that it is good farming practice. A fence row of brush and sod acts as a filter strip and prevents or slows the flow of water from one field to another. All terraces should be planted to serecia lespedeza for hay and cover, and brush piles should be left at the head of washes.
15

PREDATORS OF THE BOB WHITE QUAIL
Undoubtedly the outstanding enemy of these fine game birds is and has been the man with the shotgun. Some men who love the sport pursue coveys to the point of extinction. The real menace, however, is the "market hunter"- he who hunts and kills to sell on the black market. This man who sells quail and those who buy must be stopped if we are to have any Bob White quail at all.
Among the natural predators, we quote- with permission from "The Bob White Quail", by Herbert Stoddard, published by Charles Scribner's Sons- as follows: "Two hundred twenty-three or 37 per cent of the 602 Bob White nests studied were destroyed by natural enemies that ate either the eggs or the young during the hatching period. Sixty-five nests, or nearly ll per cent of the total studied, were broken up by skunks. It is interesting to observe that of the sixty-five nests broken up by skunks, fifty-two were destroyed before incubation of the eggs had started. It is evident that sometimes quail are attacked on the nest during the night. While a few of the feathers were occasionally found where animals tried to capture the brooding bird, no evidence of success was found. A cat, on the contrary, seldom "muffs" a sitting quail.
Thirteen, or a little more than 2 per cent of the nests studied, were destroyed by that relentless enemy of the quail, the house cat. The destructiveness of this animal is to quail of all ages, after hatching, rather than to eggs. Though the loss of eggs from this source is numerically insignificant, it is in reality serious, since as a rule it comes just at hatching time, the keen ears of the cat detecting the cheeping of the still confined chicks. The incubating bird is almost invariably caught in such cases, and the eggs, being at the hatching point, are chewed up. This is not done, however, unless incubation is far advanced; the set is lost, nevertheless, unless the cock bird, at the risk of his life, takes over the nest.
When abundant, the cotton rat becomes destructive to quail
eggs and is held responsible for the loss of 21 nests, or about 3Y2
per cent of the total number studied. As most of their egg-eating takes place during the period the eggs are accumulating in the
17

The No . 2 Predator of the Bob White Quail.

nests, it usually has the effect only of delaying temporarily the bringing off of the broods. Cotton rats are more obnoxious because of their competition with the Bob White for food and because their presence in numbers attracts many of the bird's other enemies.
The opossum, which is very abundant over the whole Southeastern quail territory, covers much ground in its nightly rambles and may be classed as one of the most serious enemies of the quail, regardless of the fact that the destruction of only seven quail nests could be definitely traced to it.
Six nests or about 1 per cent of the number of nests tabulated were broken up by blue jays, all during the dry season of 1927, when nesting cover was short and in consequence many quail nests were conspicuous. In one case where the destruction was observed the jays removed the eggs one at a time and carried them to a limb of a near-by tree, where they picked them open and ate the contents.
Although crows are well known to be great egg thieves, they are not particularly abundant in the region where these studies were carried on, and only five cases came to light during our field work where crows apparently had destroyed Bob White nests. The great areas of nesting cover offer such perfect concealment for the Bob White nests in most parts of the South that the quail have little to fear from the crows.
A great many of the different species of snakes, though by no means all, show a fondness for quail eggs or chicks. As the species of snakes that are destructive to qu;til eggs are all, as far as known, great enemies of rodents as well, indiscriminate killing of them is to be deplored.
Unknown agencies cause the destruction of some nests. Twentynine Bob White nests, while under occasional observation, were converted to "empties" by enemies that eat eggs entire and leave no "sign." The majority of these probably ,,,.ere robbed by snakes and opossums, although some probably were rifled by dogs or raccoons, or possibly by human beings. Foxes, weasels, and other
19

({etrieving of quail from the water marks the finishing touches of good bird dog training.

animals undoubtedly contribute to the destruction of eggs in Bob White nests. While the proportion of egg destruction may be expected to vary somewhat in different regions, and under different conditions, it may be safely stated that a heavy loss of eggs is caused by natural enemies in all parts of the Bob White range. When it is considered that some of the eggs frequently remain in the nest forty or more days before hatching, in an environment containing many creatures that consider eggs a delicacy, it is not strange that so small a percentage of Bob White nesting attempts succeed. As a general rule, the percentage of successful nests increases as the season advances for the cover becomes heavier and hides them more effectively. Although many Bob White enemies are afield with litters of hungry young while the birds are trying to bring off a brood late in the summer, fruit and insect food of skunks and similar enemies have increased prodigiously by that time and have so reduced the wanderings of these animals that fewer Bob White nests are found and robbed.
After hatching, dogs running at large scatter the growing chicks, which is a serious matter in wet weather, even if none are caught. House cats roam the fields during the night time, catching quail of all ages. In spite of this the multiplication and scattering of these pests continue. Human beings pay a severe penalty in reputation and money if caught killing a single quail out of season, though cats can kill any number without awakening special comment. These pests should be summarily dealt with upon quail preserves. The majority of the fur-bearers are harmful to Bob Whites only through their breaking up of nests and eating the eggs as they are too slow to catch the birds so alert and active. Weasels, foxes, and wild cats are active enough to prey on quail but in the region where the intensive studies were carried on they are found only in very limited numbers, and no depredations were directly traced to them during the investigation.
It soon became evident that the Bob White had little to fear from the majority of hawks, the "blue darters", being their only serious foes, while other hawks preyed largely on rodents and reptiles, only catching an occasional quail that might be surprised
21

The Old ll'laste-r with a couple of prospects.

at a disadvantage. The importance of an abundance of suitable cover is seldom fully realized on quail preserves. The birds are put to a great disadvantage when thickets are cut out and large tracts of their habitat are burned. 'Vhen given an abundance of suitable cover, these birds have little to fear from birds of prey "ith the single exception of the blue darter.' "
In the business of game management, it does not pay to guess. Which do you suppose the quail dreads most- foxes or rats? Mr. and Mrs. Quail may be very much afraid \\hen Mr. Fox approaches, but on the other hand they may depend upon him to save them from the rats.
It is a definitely established fact that rats, instead of quail, form the chief food of foxes, hawks, o'ds and weasels. '\rith the fox out of the way the rodents multiply unchecked. They overrun the helds and woods and destroy quail nests and young quail. Therefore, it appears to be good for the gamebirds to have their enemies," the flesh eaters, present so that they may keep the rats unrler control.
23

FISH HATCHERIES
We have fish hatcheries as follows: Summerville at Summerville, Georgia; Walton at Social Circle, Georgia; Richmond Hill at Richmond Hill, Georgia; Bowens Mill at Fitzgerald, Georgia; Lake Burton at Clarkesville, Georgia.
Mr. James expects to produce and distribute this year over the State for stocking public waters and new ponds from one and onehalf to two million fingerling Bass, Bream, Crappie, and Trout. These facilities will be expanded as rapidly as funds are available._
Heretofore, on account of limited facilities, the production of the Fish Hatcheries has gone largely into the stocking of private ponds, the development of which has seen a tremendous increase in Georgia during the last five years. l\Iost of the ponds that have been built up to nm\ are already stocked and it should not be necessary to stock them again. Therefore, it will be possible ancl it is the purpose of the present Commission to produce and place m the public streams of the State as many stock fish as possible.
25

Fry trout in holding tJool at Summerville Ha tchery .

MANAGEMENT OF FISH PONDS
It is extremely important that new ponds should not be stocked with too many fish. By the end of the first summer, if properly stocked, bream should have reached a size of approximately onefourth of a pound, and bass or crappie a size of about one pound. If too many fish are added it may take as long as five years or more for the fish to reach the above weights.
An acre of water, if not fertilized, should be stocked with 400 bream and 50 bass or crappie. If fertilized, it should be stocked with a maximum of 1,000 bream and 100 bass or crappie..
In addition to the above fish, every pond should be stocked with Gambusia Minnows at the rate of about 100 per acre. These minnows aid in controlling mosquitoes and are fine food for bass and crappie. They can usually be secured from neighboring ponds and lily pools.
RESTOCKING OLD PONDS
After a pond has once been properly stocked with fish, it should not need restocking. The trouble with most small ponds is that they are already overstocked.
In old ponds poor fishing is not due to lack of sufficient brood stock but usually to the presence of considerable numbers of larger fish, which are too wary to bite and which eat up most of the small fish produced in the pond. When this condition occurs, good fishing can best be regained by draining the pond, removing all the fish, transferring them to other holding waters, and returning tht> desired number of small fish after refilling the pond. Only brood size fish should be returned as very large old fish are cannibalistic and not suitable for spawning.
An old pond that has stood full of water for a number of years should be drained, and stand open through the winter. Then it should be fertilized, refilled, and restocked in the spring.
27

Removing large game fish from the farm pond once every five or six years is recommended.

FERTILIZING THE POND
It is known that most of the food for fish in a pond is furnished by plants so small that they can be seen only with a microscope. These microscopic plants float throughout the water, and if present in sufficient numbers, give the water a light green or brownish" color. They are eaten directly by certain species of fish, and also furnish the food for insects, tadpoles, crawfish, etc., upon which the rest of the fish feed. These microscopic plants can be produced in abundance by the usc of fertilizers with a corresponding increase in the number of pounds of fish produced per acre of water.
The first application of fertilizer should be made in the springApril in South Georgia- May in North Georgia. If the pond has not been previously fertilized., and the water is clear, two or three applications should be made (approximately every four weeks apart). The last application should be made in September.
Good results can be obtained by the use of 100 pounds per acre of a commercial mix 6-8-4 fertilizer, plus 10 pounds of nitrate of soda.
The fertilizer should be applied from a boat in the shallow waters of the pond but not near enough to the bank to encourage the growth of weeds. 'Vave action will gradually spread it over the pond.
We recommend that all ponds five acres and over should have a "rearing poncl" adjacent for use in raising fish for the large poncl.
29

Typical of South Georgia's fine fishing streams near Radium Springs, Alba11y,.

THE ROLE OF THE ENFORCEMENT OFFICER

W. H. HODGES, Chief

Our permanent full-time enforcement staff-vVildlife Rangersis composed of about ninety men. The State is divided into six districts with oAice locations and district chiefs in charge, as follows:

Mountain District Office, Gainesville, Georgia .
Flint River District Office, Albany, Georgia
Piedmont District Office, Macon, Georgia
Plains District Office, Thomson, Georgia
Coastal District Office, Jesup, Georgia
l\'lanagement Area Office, Dahlonega, Georgia

....... F. V. LovELL, Chief ]. H. HARRELL, Chief
. ]. W. THOMAsso~, Chief . C. B. ELLI:"\IGTON, Chief ]. ]. BROWN, Chief .. H. H. SEABOLT, Chief

If this small force could devote its entire time to law enforcement, it could do a much better job in this field. They should, however, be as familiar with management practices necessary to sustain wildlife in their districts as they are with the laws relating to protection. It is our purpose to increase this force in number and efficiency as quickly as funds are available.

The general duties of this division are law enforcement, patrol, investigations, prosecutions, and office work. Game work -liberating birds and animals, fire prevention, and field trial work. Fish work- planting and salvaging fish, and educational work.

Established hours of work are not possible in this work. Our Rangers are required to not only patrol by auto and boat but to get out and walk if necessary to get to the places where violations occur. They are expected to distinguish between the willful, deliberate violators and the unintentional violators. Every creed, color, and class of man with every known disposition engages in hunting and fishing. Reaction to arrest in this field carries more

31

resentment than for other offenses, hence educational effort by the Ranger with the uninformed, unintentional violator will pay splendid dividends. Nothing encourages a Ranger as much as the knowledge that he is contributing by his efforts to the improYement of hunting and fishing in his district. So the assistance and cooperation of the people in his district will add up to a better job all around by the Commission in its program of restoration and protection.
CONSISTENCY?
An Average Citizen was walking to his office one morning. His way led past the hardware store, and he stopped to see what was new in the sporting goods display. Happening to glance into the store, he saw a lounger snatch a pocketknife from a rack and conceal it in his coat pocket.
The Average Citizen ,;vas outraged; bustling into the store he called the proprietor and told him about it, pointing out the culprit who lingered by the counter. Mr. Citizen and the owner accosted the thief and held him until a policeman could be called. In jig-time the scoundrel was on his way to jail and the Average Citizen was receiving the owner's thanks for his prompt, publicspirited action.
Later that morning, a friend called on the Average Citizen. Both were ardent quail hunters and the talk soon turned to the late quail season. The friend passed on some information about a certain locality where, he said, a mutual acquaintance had reported getting his limit easily one day. The Average Citizen laughed.
"You don't know how Jim got his limit so fast? He slipped in on the refuge. And it wasn't just a limit- it was quite a bit over."
. "No!" exclaimed the friend. "That's hard to believe. Are you sure?"
"I ought to know," said the Average Citizen, "I watched him do it."
33

"But that's breaking every law in the book! 'Why didn't you tell the game warden?'
Mr. Citizen glared. "Think I'd tell on a man? Besides, it's the warden's job to catch him- it's none of my business."
They said good-bye, then, and the Average Citizen returned to work. When he got home that night, and sat down to dinner, he regaled his family with the events of the day, emphasizing- with conscious virtue- how he had twice demonstrated his code of ethics. Mrs. Citizen applauded dutifully, but 14-year-olcl Joe "as silent.
"What's the matter, Joe?" his father asked, "'ith heayy humor. "Don't you approve of my conduct?"
"I-I guess so," Joe said, squirming. ''But- Dad, if you helped arrest the man in the store, why didn't you help the warden? \Vasn't Mr. Jim breaking the law, too?"
"You don't understand, son," was the indulgent reply. "The man was stealing. Jim was just outsmarting the warden."
Joe slipped from his chair. His face was red. "Mr. Jim "'as stealing, too!" he declared. ''I want to go hunting when I gnnv up, and so does Jim Junior. If his father and other fathers break the laws and kill more'n they oughta, there won't be anything for us kids to hunt. He was stealing- from us!" And then Joe ran from the room.
The Average Citizen, his mouth open, stared after him for a moment and then picked up his fork. "That boy!" he exclaimed. "I can't figure him out. Saying Jim was stealing those quail; arguing that I should have told on a fellow sportsman!"
Mrs. Citizen didn't look dutiful now. "Well, he was breaking the law!" she snapped. "That isn't just his game. but Joe's too. \Vhat's the difference if it's quail or jack-knife?" And she walked out also.
The Average Citizen looked hurt. "\Vomen!" he growled. 'Kids! You can't reason with 'em. They're so inconsistent.
- W. 0. N. in Missouri Conservationist.
35

/

THE IMPORTANCE OF INFORMATION AND EDUCATION
By
ED FRIEND, Chief
The Information and Education Division of the Game and Fish Commission has been cooperating with the newspapers and all civic clubs and schools in putting before the general public a wildlife management program that would be attractive to our future hunters and fishermen. '"'e haYe tried to open the eyes of eyeryone to the tremendous 'raste of our wildlife resources and are trying to prevent the state-at-large from being stripped.
There are several workshops planned which will take us into a number of 4-H Club camps. The program has already been worked out and we are looking forward with interest to the reception it will be given. 'Ve are stressing the importance of having our classrooms out-of-doors in various sections of the State which are easily accessible by car, making it possible to expose large numbers of students to the possibilities of our wildlife resources.
Our new Game and Fish Commission obviously has realized the importance of an increased wildlife motion picture production as well as still pictures. The still pictures are released to all newspapers and magazines upon their request. This is an efficiency measure, knowing that many of the pictures we might send out would be discarded and the pictures sent for naught.
We feel that we should capture the attention of not only our youth, but also of our grownups, if we are to avert the serious tragedy in our wildlife resources. If we can create enough interest in this phase of wildlife, then it would only be natural that this interest would develop active participation.
We are in constant competition with a fast moving and vivid drama of today's schools, and if we make any appreciable headway, we must employ the most dramatic appeal we can get to present to the grownups, as well as to youth. In many classrooms, there are spectacular demonstrations of chemical and bioi-
37

ogy behavior. Such demonstrations, if properly done, leave a lasting impression on us. We are trying to enter the field of thinking of the student and teacher, making their field of activities and interests, our interests.
We have visited one hundred and sixty-three civic organizations and eighteen Boy Scout clubs; have spent a total of two weeks teaching game management in 4-H Clubs; have released to the newspapers three hundred and four glossy 8 x 10 photographs on wildlife management and the activities of the Game and Fish Commission; have attended every major field trial in the State of Georgia, making pictures of their activities; have been to fortyseven schools throughout the State, showing our new wildlife movie consisting of approximately eighteen hundred feet; have actively participated on four radio programs and hav-e contributed news for same.
We have added to our ever-increasing film library a new film entitled "Wild Fowl in Slow Motion." Our films are available to civic clubs, schools, etc., upon request.
39

i11crease in our Natioua/ Forest.

LICENSE FEES FOR 1949-1950 SEASON

Fishing, Hunting, Trappers, Fur Dealers, To sell fresh water fish.

Legal residents over 65 years old . .

No license fee

For fishing in home county (pole and line) .... No license required

Residents under 16 years of age (state) .. .... No license required

State resident fishing license .

$ 2.50

State non-resident fishing license (annual)

10.25

State non-resident fishing license (10 days) ..

3.25

State non-resident fishing license (1 day) ..

1.00

State resident commercial fishing license

2.00

Non-resident commercial fishing license ...

5.00

State resident shad fishing license

1.00

Non-resident shad fishing license ...

10.00

License to sell fresh water fish

5.00

County resident hunting license .

1.25

State resident hunting license ..

5.25

County non-resident hunting license

10.25

State non-resident hunting license ..

20.25

State resident trapper's license .

3.00

State non-resident trapper's license ..

25.00

State resident fur dealer's license .

10.00

State non-resident fur dealers

200.00

Fur dealer's agent

5.00

Propagation permit ....

1.00

41

\ ,
Illegal fishing devices confiscated by our Wildlife Rangers.

IT IS UNLAWFUL
To hunt any game on, over, or in the vicinity of any baited area; To use shotguns larger than 10-gauge or an automatic or hand-
operated repeating shotgun capable of holding MORE THAN THREE SHELLS, unless the magazine has been cut off or plugged with one piece of metal or wooden filler incapable of being removed through loading end; To hunt or kill woodcock or jacksnipe; To trap, molest or kill beavers and otters; To take sea turtles or their eggs; To hunt on any game refuge except on supervised hunts; To waste game wantonly; To ship game except by permit from the Game and Fish Commission; To take or sell plumage or eggs of game or song birds without a permit; To shoot from public highway or railroad right-of-way; To sell, gffer for sale, barter, or exchange, any of the protected game animals, or game birds or parts thereof, taken in the State of Georgia; To take any game bird or animal for holding in captivity except by permit; To trap, net or ensnare game birds and game animals, except furbearing animals in season; To poison game or non-game birds or animals; To resist Wildlife Rangers or other officials charged with the enforcement of game and fish laws; To use a light of any kind in hunting game animals and birds; To fail to report to the Game and Fish Commission any deer or turkey killed in the State of Georgia; To kill any deer other than bucks with spiked antlers or larger; To hold any game in cold storage longer than five days after the season has expired, without permit from the Game and Fish Commission.
SHOTGUNS ARE LIMITED TO A CAPACITY OF THREE SHELLS ON BOTH NATIVE AND MIGRATORY GAME.
43

A champion fox hound at a recent Savannah show.

HUNTING AND TRAPPING REGULATIONS
Seasons and Bag Limits for 1949-1950
Pursuant to the Act of the General Assembly of Georgia approved February 8, 1913, and amended March 9, 1945, creating a State Game and Fish Commission, the follov.ing rules and regulations for the seasons and bag limits for hunting and trapping of gamebirds and wild animals for the season beginning August 1, 1949, are hereby promulgated and adopted by the Commission, to wit:
The effective date of these rules and regulations is to be August 1, 1949, or thirty (30) days after the posting of same, as required by the aforesaid law, whichever is the first effective date and continuing in force until changed by law or proclamation.
All opening dates begin with sunrise on the opening date and all closing dates end with sundown on the closing date.
The opening date on BOB WHITE QUAIL is to be November 24, 1949, and the closing date February 25, 1950; bag limits 15 daily and 30 weekly.
The opening date on WILD TURKEY is to be November 15, 1949, closing date February 15, 1950. Bag limit two (2) daily, two. (2) weekly, and two (2) for season. These opening and closing dates and bag limits apply to all counties in the State except those north of Chattahoochee, Marion, Schley, Macon, Peach, Houston, Twiggs, Wilkinson, Washington, Jefferson and Burke, in all of which counties the season on wild turkey is to be closed entirely, and the following counties in which the opening date is to be October 20, 1949, closing elate January 5, 1950, Screven, Jenkins, Candler, Bulloch, Effingham, Chatham, Bryan, Evans, Tattnall, Toombs, Jeff Davis, Appling, Liberty, Long, Coffee, Bacon, Wayne, Mcintosh, Glynn, Pierce, Atkinson, Lanier, Lowndes, Clinch, Echols, Ware, Brantley, Camden, and Charlton.
The opening date on RABBITS is to be November 1, 1949, dosing date February 25, 1950. Bag limit eight (8) daily.
45

The opening date on OPOSSUM is to be October 1, 1949, closing date February 15, 1950. No bag limit.
The opening date on RACCOON is to be November 20, 1949, closing date February 15, 1950. No bag limit. The raccoon season applies to all counties in the State except Catoosa, Walker, Dade, Whitfield, and Chattooga, which are being restocked and are to be closed to hunting for this season.
There is to be no closed season and no bag limit on FOX.
The opening season on RUFFED GROUSE is to be November 20, 1949, closing date January 15, 1950. Bag limit three (3) daily, three (3) weekly.
There is no open season on ALLIGATORS.
There is no open season on SEA TURTLES and EGGS.
The opening date on SQUIRREL is to be November 1, 1949, closing date January 5, 1950, in all counties in the State with the exception of those counties north of Carroll, Douglas, Fulton, DeKalb, Rockdale, Walton, Oconee, Clarke, Oglethorpe, Wilkes, and Lincoln, in which counties the opening date is to be October 1, 1949, closing date December 5, 1949, and the following counties in which the opening date is to be October 20, 1949, closing date January 5, 1950, Screven, Jenkins, Candler, Bulloch, Effingham, Chatham, Bryan, Evans, Tattnall, Toombs, Jeff Davis, Appling, Liberty, Long, Coffee, Bacon, Wayne, Mcintosh, Glynn, Pierce, Atkinson, Lanier, Lowndes, Clinch, Echols, Ware, Brantley, Camden, and Charlton. Bag limit 10 daily, 10 weekly, in all counties in the State.
The opening date on BEAR in all counties in the State except Catoosa, Dade, Dawson, Fannin, Floyd, Gilmer, Gordon, Habersham, Lumpkin, Murray, Pickens, Rabun, Stephens, Towns, Union, Walker, White, Whitfield and Chattooga, which counties have no open season on bear, is to be November 20, 1949, closing date February 15, 1950. No bag limit.
The opening date on DEER (bucks only) in the following counties, Gilmer, Murray, Fannin, Pickens, Dawson, Lumpkin, Union,
47

/Job White quail- the finest game bird of them all.
/

Towns, White, Rabun, and Habersham, is to be November 10, 1949, closing date November 25, 1949. Bag limit one (1). The hunting of deer in these counties with dogs is prohibited. The opening season on deer is to be October 20, 1949, closing date January 5, 1950, in the following counties, Screven, Jenkins, Candler, Bulloch, Effingham, Chatham, Bryan, Evans, Tattnall, Toombs, Jeff Davis, Appling, Liberty, Long, Coffee, Bacon, Wayne, Mcintosh, Glynn, Pierce, Atkinson, Lanier, Lowndes, Clinch, Echols, Ware, Brantley, Camden, and Charlton. Bag limit two (2). The opening season on deer in the following counties is to be November I, 1949, closing date January 5, 1950. Seminole, Decatur, Miller, Early, Baker, Mitchell, Grady, Thomas, Brooks, Colquitt, Cook, Berrien, Tift, Woth, Dougherty, Calhoun, Clay, Quitman, Randolph, Terrell, Lee, Turner, Irwin, Ben Hill, Telfair, Wilcox, Crisp, Stewart, \Vebster, Sumter, Dooly, Pulaski, Dodge, and Bleckley. All other counties of the State are closed to deer hunting for the entire season. Guns for hunting deer are limited to shotguns loaded with No. l buckshot, or larger, or to rifles using any center fire cartridges .25 caliber or above with the following exceptions, .25-.20, .32-.20, or .30 army carbine.
Regulations on MIGRATORY GAME such as DOVE, DUCKS, GEESE, BRANT, RAIL, AND COOT are the same as the Federal Regulations which will be published as soon as established. Shotguns must be plugged to limit them to a capacity of three (3) shells on both native and migratory game.
The opening date of the trapping season on FOX, OPOSSUM, MINK, MUSKRAT, RACCOON, SKUNK, WILDCAT is to be November 20, 1949, and closing date is to be February 15, 1950. No bag limit.
There is no open trapping season on BEAVER and OTTER.
The above regulation does not apply to the Game Management area in the Chattahoochee National Forest. Separate rules and regulations are promulgated jointly by the Federal and State Authorities governing the taking of game and fish on these areas.
All regulations previously passed that conflict with this regulation are hereby repealed.
49

"The chase is the thing," say Georgia's fox hunters.

I, J. R. Holland, Chairman of the State Game and Fish Com-
mission of Georgia, do certify that the foregoing is a complete copy of the rules and regulations promulgated and adopted by the Commission in regular meeting assembled, on the 28th day of June, 1949, copy of the minutes of which meeting is on file in the office of the State Game and Fish Commission.
Given under my hand, and the official seal of the Georgia Game and Fish Commission on the 28th day of June, 1949.
J. R. HOLLAND, Chairman,
State Game and Fish Commission, State of Georgia
51

A j et A it Force Pilot ptoudly displa ys his catch from the Okefenokee Swamp.

FISHING REGULATIONS
Proclaiming Open and Closed Seasons for Fishing in Fresh Waters of Georgia and Placing Restrictions and Limitations
Upon the Taking and Selling of Fish in This State

Pursuant to the Act of the General Assembly of Georgia approved February 8, 1943, and amended March 9, 1945, creating a State Game and Fish Commission, the following rules and regulations are hereby promulgated and adopted by the Commission, to wit:

Effective April 1, 1948, and continuing in force until changed by law or pmclamation, all of the fresh water streams, lakes, and ponds of Geergia will be open to legal fishing throughout the year with the following exception.

Exception: The trout streams of the following twelve mountain counties- Dawson, Fannin, Gilmer, Habersham, Lumpkin, Murray, Pickens, Rabun, Stephens, Towns, Union and \Vhite. Fishing in these waters is prohibited from November 15 through March 31, inclusive, each year.

The restrictions and limitations upon the taking of fish in this State shall be as follows:

Rock Fish or Striped Bass .. Large Mouth Black Bass Small Mouth Black Bass Rock Bass.. Kentucky or Red Eye Bass Bream. Perch. Crappie .. Eastern Pickerel or Jack . Wall Eyed Pike .. Muskelunge .. Brook Trout. Rainbow Trout.. Brown Trout Red Breast Perch ..

10 in one day 10 in one day 10 in one day 10 in one day 10 in one day 25 in one day 25 in one day 15 in one day 15 in one day
3 in one day 2 in one day 10 in one day 10 in one day 10 in one day 25 in one day

53

Provided, however, that "it shall be unlawful for any person to possess at any one time more than 30 fish in the aggregate of all species named"; and provided that "no more than 10 Bass of any and all species in the aggregate can be taken in any one day"; provided that no more than 10 Trout of any or all species in the aggregate can be taken in one day; and provided further, that it shall be unlawful for any person to sell, to purchase, or offer to purchase or offer for sale any of the fish above listed.
THE TROUT STREAMS AND LAKES wiTHIN THE GAME MANAGEMENT AREAS ARE OPEN EACH YEAR UNDER THE REGULTIONS AGREED UPON BY THE STATE GAME AND FISH COMMISSION AND U.S. FOREST SERVICE. THESE SCHEDULES MAY BE OBTAINED FROM THE STATE GAME AND FISH COMMISSION IN ATLANTA.
The present schedules can be found on page 82.
54

SHAD FISH REGULATIONS
Pursuant to the Act of the General Assembly of Georgia, ap proved February 8, 1943, creating a State Game and Fish Commission, the following rules and regulations are hereby promulgated and adopted by the Director, and approved by the Commission, to wit:
The season for taking shad in the St. Mary's River shall be from December 15 to April 15. In all other streams the season shall be from February lst to April 15. Nets shall be 4Y2-inch- or 5Y2-inch-mesh sizes when stretched. Nets shall be set so as to allow one-third of the stream width free for passage for fish. Nets shall not be set within 150 feet of a net previously set.
During each week of such open season there shall be a closed time during which no shad fish shall be taken from the waters of this State in any manner, and no shad nets shall remain in, or be placed in, such waters, beginning at sundown Saturday of each 1\'eek, and extending until sunrise on Tuesday following.
Definition: The above regulations cover all species of shad fish, including "hat is commonly known as white shad and hickory shad.
The above regulations shall remain in effect until changed by law or proclamation.
I, J. R. Holland, Chairman of the State Game and Fish Com-
mission of Georgia, do certify that the foregoing is a complete copy of the rules and regulations promulgated and adopted by the Director, and approved by the Commission in meeting assembled in Atlanta, Georgia, on the 3rd day of March, 1949, and on file in the office of the Commission at the Capitol.
Given under my hand, and the official seal of said Commission, on this lOth day of May, 1949.
J. R. HOLLAND, Chairman
State Game and Fish Commission State of Georgia
55

SALT WATER FISHING REGULATIONS
Prohibiting the Use of Power-Drawn Nets in the Salt Waters of This State After August 1, 1949
Pursuant to the Act of the General Assembly of Georgia, approved February 8, 1943, and amended March 9, 1945, creating a State Game and Fish Commission the following rules and regulations are hereby promulgated and adopted by the Commission, to wit:
Effective August I, 1949, or 30 days after the posting of this regulation, according to the law aforesaid, whichever is the first effective elate and continuing in force until changed by law or proclamation, the use of power-drawn nets of any kind in taking salt water game fish and shrimp from the inland salt waters, including all sounds, estuaries, salt water rivers, and creeks is hereby prohibited. Outside salt waters are defined as those waters from the outermost part of the coast line to the limit of the threemile jurisdiction, and embrace that part of the Atlantic Ocean under the jurisdiction of this State. Inland salt waters not included in outside salt waters include all sounds, estuaries, salt water rivers and creeks.
This regulation does not include "shad fish" or in any manner affect previous regulations governing the taking of "shad fish" from the fresh or salt waters of this State.
All regulations previously passed that conflict with this regulation are hereby repealed.
I, J. R. Holland, Chairman of the State Game and Fish Com-
mission of Georgia, do certify that the foregoing is a complete copy of the rules and regulations promulgated and adopted by the Commission in regular meeting assembled, on the 28th day of June, 1949, copy of the minutes of which meeting is on file in the office of the State Game and Fish Commission.
Given under my hand, and the official seal of the Georgia Game and Fish Commission on the 28th day of June, 1949.
J. R. HOLLAND, Chairman
State Game and Fish Commission State of Georgia
56

FISHING SCHEDULE 1949 Chattahoochee National Forest
Creel Limit: The maximum catch in any day and the maximum number in possession of one person shall not exceed 10 fish of any one or all species, of any size.
Fees and Manner of Fishing: Fishing permits shall be $1.00 per person per day. Permits shall be valid on any stream or lake during the regulated season for such water. No person regardless of age will be allowed to fish these waters without a permit.
Permits shall not be valid unless accompanied by a regular State Fishing License unless permittee is under 16 years of age or permittee is a resident of the County in which he is fishing and uses earth worms only.
Fish shall be taken only with rod and line. Any type of bait or lure, except Baltimore minnows or goldfish, may be used. Each permittee shall have in use at any one time on the area not more than one rod and line.
Permits Necessary Before Fishing: Fishermen are required to obtain fishing permits before they begin fishing. Permits can be obtained from the vVildlife Rangers on the areas or they can be obtained from the following addresses: Georgia Game and Fish Commission, State Capitol, Atlanta,
Georgia.
District Forest Ranger, U. S. Forest Service, Blue Ridge, Georgia. District Forest Ranger, U. S. Forest Service, Suches, Georgia. District Forest Ranger, U. S. Forest Service, Clayton, Georgia.
Wildlife Rangers and patrolmen will be at various road entJ:ances into the areas and permits may be obtained from them. However, to avoid delay in getting started, fishermen should obtain permits as far in advance as possible.
Persons found fishing without permits will be liable for legal action.
Fishing Time: Fishing shall be permitted only between the hours of daylight and dark of the same day.
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THE LICENSE DIVISION
TOM SANDERS, Chief
Under a new law passed by the 1949 legislature, the Commission handles the sales of its own fishing and hunting licenses.
For the convenience of the public about 600 agents have been appointed, some of which are in each county of the State. Some are county officers and some are hardware and sporting goods dealers.
These agents are bonded by the Commission and they receiYe 25 cents per license sold for their services and as has been said before, this is the money on which the Game and Fish Commission operates. They are doing a splendid job under Mr. Sanders, who expects the license sales to reach $500,000 for this season.
The State Auditor reuqires that every license number or the money therefor be accounted for.
58

FEDERAL AID DIVISION
THOMAS H. JONES, Coordinator
Source of Operations and Authority:
The funds coming from the Government in the participation of the Pittman-Robertson Act is derived from the excise tax placed upon the sporting arms and ammunitions sold in the United States. This act was passed by Congress September 2, 1937. Through the act the Federal Government will participate in Game Restoration in cooperation with the State to a pro rata share ot 75 per cent of the costs of operation ot the prograw.
The reimbursement of such operations is made only after the completion of such an operation and is paid on quarterly basis. Until the time of reimbursement, the State must pay the expenses, therefore many projects must be held up until the State has enough money in its budget to finance such a project through its initial stages.
The states are allotted a certain amount of money based on the number of hunting licenses that are sold within the state each year, and it is on this amount that the entire budget of Federal Aid Operations is based.
Personnel:
The personnel of this division is based on the CoordinatorProject Leader Program. The Coordinator is in charge of all operations and the costs and administration thereof. He is also in charge of keeping the Federal Government informed of the details of the projects, their costs and reports of progress. He also is in charge of the creation of new projects and the public relations of this division.
The Coordinator is responsible to Mr. Calhoun, the director, and to Dr. C. '"' vVatson, the Regional Inspector, for Federal Aid Activities of the U. S. Fish and vVildlife Service. It is through the combined effort of these three men that the approval for a project must be obtained. Any proposed project can be stopped by the disapproval of any of these three men.
59

'-
'
Bear being released in the Chattahoochee National Forest under Federal Aid Program.

Project Leader: The job of the project leader is the administration and super-
vision of the project to which he is assigned. In some cases, he will have an assistant depending on the size of the project, and in other cases he is the only person employed on the project. This is not to be used as a criterion as to the relative importance of a project, for some work warrants only one man to do efficiently, while others, such as development projects needs the combined efforts of a number of field personnel.
Federal Aid Project Leaders must have received at least a B.S. in Wildlife Management, Forestry, or some closely related field of study before they can be employed as such, the potential project leader and other technical men must be approved by both the State and the Federal Government.
61

J
Trapping beaver under the Federal Aid Program for release in new areas.

FEDERAL AID PROJECTS
PROJECT 1-R: STATEWIDE GAME INVENTORY AND MANAGEMENT SURVEY
Project Leader: GEORGE W. ALLEN Assistant Leader: JACK CROCKFORD Field Biologist: DoNALD CHARBONNEAU
JoHN CoNNELL (Two more to be employed 111 summer of
1949.)
The object of this proj~ct is to determine the numbers and the correct management procedures for the game animals of Georgia. In addition to this, the personnel of this project "'ork on the following phases of game administration and management:
1. Public Relations. 2. Preliminary Refuge and Development Surycys and Land
Acquisition. 3. Farm-Game Consultants. 4. Technical Observations on Managed Hunts.
In making these surveys the biologists go into each county of the State and determine all the factors which will influence the game populations. Upon completion of the determination of all these factors, a recommendation is submitted for the management and the solving of the game problems of that specific county. It takes approximately five weeks to make a survey of each county, and the cost has been averaging .003 cents per acre surveyed. At the time of this writing, one third of the entire State has been surveyed, and it is expected that it will take three more years to complete the entire State.
PROSPECT 9-R: CLAPPER RAIL (MARSH HEN) STUDY
Project Leader: JoHN ONEY Field Assistant: Lou NoRTH
Since practically no information on the life history of the Clap-
63

per Rail is available as a basis for management, this project investigates the following problems:
(a) Mating habit. (b) Nesting habits. (c) Migration or movements. (d) Food habits. (e) Influences on population. (f) Recommendations and a plan of management.
In addition to the regular activities of the project personnel which consists of being in the marshes observing the nesting habits. the actiYities and other important observations of the marsh hen, ~lr. Oney distributes questionnaires and interviews the hunters that are in the marsh during the hunting season. Recently Mr. Oney spent a number of weeks at the Patuxent Laboratory in l\Iarylancl analyzing the gizzards of hundreds of marsh hens determining the food that these interesting birds require.
This project has been under way since the summer of 1947, and already Mr. Oney has collected a great deal of important and interesting information.
PROJECT 15-R: MIGRATORY '\t\TATERFOWL SURVEY
Project Leader: MARVIN J OHNso:-.~
The principal object of this project is to plan a state migratory waterfowl development project. The following objectives will be gained before a restoration program is formulated:
1. Determination of wintering grounds. 2. Habitat preference and food habit studies. 3. Cover and food plant sampling of coastal and inland waters. 4. Studies of limiting factors and methods of attracting more
waterfowl to the State. 5. Studies of impoundments. 6. Study of the effect of pollution. 7. Location of areas which offer good possibilities of land acqui-
sition for future refuges and public shooting areas.
64

PROJECT 4-D: FARM GAME HABITAT RESTORATION

Project Leader:

To be appointed.

Assistant Project Leader: A. MACK SMITH

Assistant Project Leader: To be appointed.

The purpose of this project is to restore suitable habitat for the restoration of Bob \Vhite quail and other upland game to a lesser extent.

In order that the landowner may participate in this project he must first contact his local Soil Conservation Service representative or his County Agent. This is necessary since the State has a cooperative agreement with the service to furnish seed and/or seedling that this project be accomplished. The landowner simply expresses a desire to participate in the restoration of suitable game habitat to the S.C.S. representative or County Agent. The S.C.S. representative or County Agent in turn contacts the pi:oject leader or one of his assistants requesting the necessary seed or seedling to furnish the landowner in his district or territory. Before planting time the project leader or one of his assistants distributes the seed or seedling to the County Agent or the S.C.S. representative, he in turn makes distribution to the individual. The S.C.S. representative will supervise preparation of the lands and plantings. The State Game and Fish Commission heretofore has agreed to pay the farmer for the labor or growing and handling the seed or seeding. Market prices this year "ere $3.00 per 1,000 seedling and $1.00 per pound for cleaned and scarified seed or 50 cents per pound for non-scarified seed. It is believed the market will hold this season.

PROJECT 14-D: REFUGE MANAGEMENT AND DEVELOPMENT PROJECT

Project Leader: Assistant Project Leader: Assistant Project Leader: Assistant Project Leader: Equipment Foreman:

ANDERSON M. GRAY
S. L. JoNES A. B. BRISCOE
A. c. SANDERS
To be appointed.

65

The object of this project is to create and maintain a system of wildlife refuges within the State for the purpose of game restoration and rahabilitation.
At the present time there are four operating refuges within the State, and a number of others are in the actual steps of being set up under the administration of the Federal Aid Program. Some of these refuges have full-time personnel assigned to the areas, and others have none, depending on the character of the refuge and the agreements with the landowners cooperating with the department.
The following refuges are in operation at the present time: I. Reynolds Brothers, Dougherty County, 30,000 acres; S. L.
Jones in charge. 2. Sconti Refuge and Management Area, Pickens County,
20,000 acres; no personnel assigned. 3. Piedmont Refuge, Putnam County, 45,000 acres; A. B.
Briscoe in charge. 4. Berry Schools Refuge, Floyd County, 23,000 acres; A. C.
Sanders in charge. 5. Candler County Refuge, Candler County, 23,000 acres; no
personnel assigned. 6. Lookout Mountain, Dade and \Valker County, 38,000 acres;
no personnel assigned.
Areas proposed for refuges, and desired by the residents of certain areas must meet the following requirements before a cooprative agreement between game agencies and the landowners can be promulgated:
I. Areas must be at least 10,000 acres in size. 2. Proposed areas must be at least twenty-five direct miles from
the closed existing refuge. 3. There must not be over two owners per 5,000 acres of proposed refuge. 4. The counties in which the refuge is proposed must have local
magistrates that are in sympathy with our program and will prosecute the game violators to the limit of the law.
66

5. There must be a game ranger assigned to that area in which the refuge is to be located.
When making such agreements the landowners agree to establish an inviolate refuge for a period of from seven to ten years. This area will be managed by the State Game and Fish Commission for the welfare of the game upon the refuge.

PROJECT 8-D: TRAPPING AND RESTORATION

Project Leader: D. H. SHAVER

Trapper:

.JESSE SMITH

The object of this project is to trap and remove animals from areas where they have reached surplus numbers, and restock these animals in areas where breeding stock is needed. This restocking is for a breeding population only, and not an attempt to establish a hunting population out of the stocked animals.

The record at the present time for this project is as follows:

1. Purchased ancl released 125 deer from Texas. These were released at: Lookout Mountain Sconti Refuge Candler County Refuge
2. Trapped and released approximately I 00 deer from Blackbeard Island. These animals were released at: Berry Schools Early County Candler County Piedmont Refuge
3. Trapped fifty turkeys from cooperative plantations and released them in desirable locations.
4. Trapped and released sixty coons. 5. Approximately 50 beavers were trapped from areas where
it was reported that they were doing damage to the landowners' welfare.

67

PROJECT 11-D: POSTING Project Leader: LAWRENCE PEARCE
The object of this project is to mark the boundaries of the established refuges according to the regulations set up by the United States Fish and 'V'ilcllife Service. These markings consist of signs attached to the trees, posts or other outstanding features along the perichery of the refuge and the striping of the intermediate features with two bands of yellow paint. In addition to this work, Mr. Pearce has to establish many of the boundaries that he is supposed to mark. This is done with the aid of the county surveyor and any other assistance that he feels is necessary.
68

FUTURE PLANS
The future of the Federal Aid Division is as follows:
1. Predator Study: The object of this project will be to determine the true
position of Yarious predators in Georgia in relationship to the game species preyed upon. 2. Quail Study:
The object of this project will be to determine the management and the present status of the Bob \Vhite quail throughout the entire State. 3. Turkey Study:
The object of this study will be to determine the present status of the wild turkey in the entire State, and the detennination of the correct management measures to assure the State of the continued existence and the probable increase of hunting concerning this bird. 4. White-tailed Deer Study:
The object of this project will be to determine the status and management procedures for the white-tailed deer in the entire State. This will be the next new project activated according to the present plans. It is anticipated that Mr. Jack Crockford will be the project leader, and that he will haYe an assistant. This coming summer, 1949, Mr. Crockford, in cooperation with the United States Forest Service, will conduct a browse survey in the mountains of North Georgia. Although this will not be actually set up under this proposed project, it will be one of the initial steps in this project's administration. 5. Wildlife Trend Project:
The object of this project will be to keep the administrators informed as to the relative abundance, and the game trends throughout the entire State. Because of its nature it will be able to specifically investigate small, short-time projects such as breeding activities and game kill statistics by specifically concentrating on the problems as they arise.
69

6. Coastal Plains Experimental Area: The object of this project is to establish methods of farm
game administration for the purpose of demonstrating the correct manner of such administration for building the farm game population in the State. In addition to this the area will act as a research station in the solution of such problems as the effects of insect spray on quail populations, the seasonal plantings of game foods and the development of new food crops for the game animals. This project is located on the old Providence Plantation about twelve miles west of Albany, Georgia, the project leader is undetermined at the present time. The farm manager is Mr. E. vV. Brunner and is in charge of the area at the present time. 7. Dove Study:
The object of this project is to determine the reasons for the continued decrease in the numbers of the Mourning Dove. This is a cooperative project between all states in the Eastern United States, and should be most beneficial in the management of these hirds.
70

GEORGIA'S COASTAL FISHERIES
]. NOLAN WELLS, Supervisor Brunswick, Ga.
LOUIS J. ANDREWS, JR., Assistant Supervisor
Savannah, Ga.
Georgia has the longest coastline of any southeastern state, except Florida -approximately 170 miles. All of the sounds along this coast are closed to all commercial fishing, for the purpose of protecting these propagating area. These sounds cover a larger area than any other southeastern state which makes it the largest and best shrimp-producing area.
The shrimp industry, therefore, is very important, economically speaking. Three hundred or more local resident fishermen and at least two hundred out-of-state fishermen, fish the waters of the Atlantic, along our shore line, which gives employment to at least l ,500 people in boat crews alone, during the main shrimping season, from April to November. This many more people are employed in processing and shipping. Each shrimping vessel or boat involves an average investment of approximately $20,000, and shrimp packing plants in the area represent an investment of over $1 ,000,000. It can readily be seen, therefore, that the job- keeping the shrimp industry alive and protected- is a Must" for the Game and Fish Commission.
The shrimp are produced in the sounds, largely, and migrate to the outward water along the coast after maturity, and if fishing were allowed in the sounds, the propagating areas would be destroyed in the process and our shrimp industry would no doubt go the way of our oystBr industry, which was of prime importance up to twenty years ago.
The principal duties of our patrol force on the coast is to protect the sounds so that a supply of shrimp for this industry may be maintained. For this purpose, we have a force of seventeen men, four patrol boats, and one patrol plane. These men are constantly on the move in the area, and are out when the fishermen are out, night or day.
71

OYSTERS
The oyster industry, up to about twenty years ago, was important. It is not so important today, because the oysters which were in great abundance and of splendid quality, were harvested almost to the point of extinction and without any replanting to speak of.
This, together with the extensive dredging of the channels in the area by the Federal Government which changed the play of the tides on a great portion of the best producing areas, has brought the industry to the point of insignificance. It is our understanding that it can be restored, but at a tremendous cost. This is an example of what happens when our natural resources are spent with prodigality, and is responsible for the Commission's present program of restoration and protection before extinction. The cost of replacement after extinction is almost prohibitive.
CRAB
The crab industry along the coast is of economic importance and is becoming more so, daily. The crab are collected, carried into processing plants, and the finished produce of "crab meat" is shipped to all points of the country. The coastal fisheries patrolmen are charged with the duty of protecting this industry also, their duty being to see that the female crab are not taken during the spawning season.
Aside from the economic importance of the fishing of this area, it offers a limitless field in the art of fishing for the fun of it. Sportsmen find in the rivers, creeks, sounds, and the ocean itself, fresh water fishing and salt water fishing beyond compare. A few of the places where accommodations can be had are listed below:
Hoke Yomans, Yellow Bluff Camp- Near Midway, Georgia.
Roscoe Denmark, Maxwellton Plantation, Yellow Bluff Camp, Midway, Georgia.
Connie's Yacht Basin, Wilmington Island, Tybee Road, Route 2, Savannah, Georgia.
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A good catch of shad on the Altamaha River near Darien.

Boyd's Fishing Camp, Lazareta Bridge, Tybee Island, Savannah, Georgia.
Detreno's Fishing Camp- near Shellman Bluff, Darien, Georgia. Priest Fishing Camp - St. Simons Island, Brunswick, Georgia. Taylor's Fishing Camp- St. Simons Island, Brunswick, Georgia. Cloister Hotel - St. Simons Island, Brunswick, Georgia; fishing
trips arranged for guests only. Pine Harbor, Arthur Hardy- 35 miles south of Savannah, on
Georgia Coastal Highway.
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FISHING SITES IN GEORGIA
NORTH GEORGIA FISHING SITES
BARTOW COUNTY: Lake Aubrey -located six miles north of Cartersville.
DEKALB COUNTY: Forest Lake -located three miles south of Lithonia, Georgia. Norris Lake- located seven miles cast of Lithonia, Georgia.
FANNIN COUNTY: Lake Blue Ridge -located about four miles north of Blue Ridge, Georgia. Owned by T.V.A. One hundred and eight miles of shore line fishing area in lake. Kinds of fish: Large and Small Mouth Bass, Muskellunge, Bream, Crappie. Boats and motors are available at Camps listed below: Harry's Lakeside Court- Blue Ridge, Georgia. Lake View Hotel- Fred Akins, owner, Blue Ridge, Georgia. Trout Streams, Rock Creek- twelve miles northeast of Dahlonega, Georgia. Kinds of fish: Rainbow, Brook, and Brown Trout. Jack's River- eleven miles west of Blue Ridge, lJ. S. National Forest. Noontootly Creek- fifteen miles east of Blue Ridge, U. S. National Forest. NoTE: Special permits at cost of $1.00 per day required for these streams and may be secured from Forest Service Rangers or State Rangers at Blue Ridge or Suches, Georgia. See schedule of open dates.
FULTON COUNTY: Brown's Lake -located nine miles northwest of Fairburn, Georgia.
Black Rock Lake- located seven miles southwest of Atlanta, Georgia.
Ever Clear Lake- located one mile west of Stonewall, Georgia, eight miles south of College Park, Georgia.
GILMER COUNTY: Ellijay River, Carticay River, Stanley Creek, Big Creek, and Mountain Creek. Located around Ellijay, Georgia. Open stream fishing. Kinds of fish: Rainbow Trout,
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Kentucky Bass, and Rock Bass. Meals and lodging at Ellijay, Georgia.
GORDON COUNTY: Dews Lake -located seven miles east of Calhoun, Georgia.
HENRY COUNTY: Twelve Oaks- one and one-half miles west of Lovejoy, Georgia.
LU~IPKIN COUNTY: Boggs Creek, Chattahoochee National Forest Trout Stream, located t"-cnty miles northwest of Dahlonega, Georgia. Kinds of fish: Rainbow, Brook, and Brown Trout. Chestatee River- Chattahoochee National Forest Trout Stream, located eleven miles northwest of Cleveland Georgia. Kinds of fish: Rainbow, Brook, and Brown Trout. Jones' Creek- Chattahoochee National Forest Stream, located eight miles nortlnrest of Dahlonega, Georgia. Kinds of fish: Rainbow, Brook, and Brown Trout. ~lontgomery Creek- Chattahoochee National Forest Stream, located nine miles northwest of Dahlonega, Georgia. Kinds of fish: Rainbow, Brook, and Brown Trout. \Vater Creek- Chattahoochee National Forest Trout Stream, located northwest of Dahlonega, Georgia. Kinds of fish: Rainbow, Brook, and Brown Trout. NoTE: A special permit at a cost of $1.00 per day is required on these streams. Permits may be secured from Forest Service Ranger Station, Suches, Georgia, or State Ranger on stream. See special schedule for open days.
MURRAY COUNTY: Conasauga River- Chattahoochee National Forest Trout Stream, located fifteen miles west of Blue Ridge, Georgia. Kinds of fish: Rainbow, Brown, and Brook Trout. Non:: A special permit at a cost of $1.00 per day is required on this stream. Permit may be secured from Forest Service Ranger Station, Blue Ridge, Georgia, or from State Ranger on stream. Sec special schedule for open dates.
RABUN COUNTY: Moccasin and Wildcat Creeks- Chattahoochee National Forest Trout Streams, located about fifteen
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miles west of Clayton, Georgia. Kinds of fish: Brook, Rainbow, and Brown Trout. NoTE: A special permit at cost of $1.00 per day is required for
this stream and may be secured from Forest Service Station, Clayton, Georgia, or from State Ranger on stream. See special schedule of open dates on this stream. Lake Burton, Seed and Rabun- owned by Georgia Power Company, located about eighteen miles north of Clarkesville and fifteen miles west of Clayton, Georgia. These are large power lakes, having good Large Mouth Bass, Bream, and Crappie fishing. Boats, motors, and bait available at most fishing camps. Excellent food and lodging available at camps. A few are listed below: Hills' Camp- seyen miles west of Clayton, Georgia. LaPrade Fishing Camp- eighteen miles north of Clarkesville, Georgia. Lige's Camp- nine miles west of Clayton, Georgia. Miss Carrie Camp- 17 miles North of Clarkesville, Georgia. Henry B. Pittman's Camp- 16 miles north of Clarkesville, Georgia.
"Wikle's Camp- 14 miles north of Clarkesville, Georgia.
Hall's Boat House - 10 miles north of Clarkesville, Georgia.
STEPHENS COUNTY: Lake Louise- 178-acre lake, three miles east of Toccoa, Georgia, operated by LeTourneau Company of Georgia. Large Mouth Bass, Bream, and Warmouth. Hotel on lake (Lake Louise Hotel) and hotel close by.
TOWNS COUNTY: Lake Chatuge -located at Hiawassee, Georgia, owned by T.V.A. Excellent Large and Small Mouth Black Bass, Bream, and Crappie fishing. Boats, motors, and bait available at all fishing camps. A few are listed below that have good lodging and excellent meals. Eller Hotel, Hiawassee, Georgia. Thurman and Caldwell, Hiawassee, Georgia. Lake Hotel, Hiawassee, Georgia. Home Folks Cafe and Tourist Camp, Hiawassee, Georgia.
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Chatuge Lodge, Hiawassee, Georgia. Cloer's Fishing Camp, Hia,\asscc, Georgia. Hendrix Camp, Hiawassee, Georgia.
J. C. Lee, Hiawassee, Georgia.
WHITE COUNTY: Chattahoochee River and Duke's Creek, Chattahoochee National Forest Trout Streams -located at Robertstown and Helen, Georgia. Kinds of fish: Rainbow, Brook, and Brown Trout. Good lodging and meals available ncar streams. NoTE: A special permit at cost of $1.00 per day is required for these streams and may be secured from Forest Service Ranger at Suches, Georgia, or from State Ranger on streams. Sec schedule for open elates on these streams.
UNION COUNTY: Lake Nottlcy -located at Blairsville, Georgia. Owned by T.V.A. Excellent Large and Small Mouth Bass, Bream, and Crappie fishing. Boats, motors, and bait available at fishing camps. Good lodging and food arc to be had at all fishing camps. A few are listed below: Jones Hotel, Blairsville, Georgia. Robert L. Head, Blairsville, Georgia. Frank \V. \'Vhitc, Blairsville, Georgia.
MIDDLE GEORGIA FISHING SITES
BUTTS COUNTY: Jackson Lake- eight miles cast of Jackson, Georgia, owned by Georgia Power Company. Large Mouth Black Bass, Bream, and Crappie fishing. Boats and motors available at lake. Also meals and lodging on lake.
CRISP COUNTY: Lake Blackshear- owned by Crisp County, 8,000 acres- located between Cordele and Americus, Ga., and between Cordele and Albany, Georgia. Bass, Bream, and Crappie fishing. Boats available at several camps. Meals at camps, but nearest lodging at Cordele, ten miles away.
PUTNAM COUNTY: Rock Eagle Lake, Manager, E. V. Manley: Eatonton, Georgia -located nine miles north of Eatonton, Geor-
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gia. Fishing area 110 acres; bait, worms and minnows; boats 50 cents to $1.00 per day. No motors allowed. Kinds of fish: Large Mouth Black Bass, Warmouth, and Bream. No meals or lodging available at lake.
HOUSTON COUNTY: Houston Lake, operator, Abner Howard, Perry, Georgia, 500 acres fishing area, twenty boats at $1.00 per day per person. No tackle or bait available. Kinds of fish: Bass, Bream, and Warmouth. Meals and lodging can be arranged by contacting operator at Perry, Georgia.
DOUGHERTY COUNTY: Chehaw Lake and Flint River- one mile north of Albany, Georgia. Kinds of fish: Bass, Bream, and Warmouth. Boats and bait available at two boat docks. No lodging or meals available at lake.
SOUTH GEORGIA FISHING SITES
BRANTLEY COUNTY: Satilla River, east of Nahunta, Georgia, through Brantley and Camden Counties. Excellent Bass and Bream fishing. Boats with motors and guides can be had at
F. J. Rozier's Camp at Atkinson, Georgia. Lodging and meals.
Boats, guides, and accommodations available at Woodbine, Georgia, in Camden County.
BRYAN COUNTY: Ogeechee River- fourteen miles south of Savannah, Georgia, through Bryan and Chatham Counties. Excellent Bass and Bream fishing. Boats with motors, bait, and guides available. Meals and lodging available at camps listed below: Dasher's Fishing Lodge, twenty-one miles west of Savannah, Georgia. A. Carson, Ellabell, Georgia.
CAMDEN COUNTY: St. Marys River- five miles west of Kingsland, Georgia. Bass and Bream fishing. Boats, motors, guides, lodging and meals available at C. S. Merck's, Kingsland, Georgia.
CHARLTON COUNTY: Canal entrance to Okefenokee Swamp- eleven miles southwest of Folkston, Georgia. Twenty-
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three boats available at $1.00 per day, four motors at $5.00 per day. Guides also available. No lodging or meals. Nearest at Folkston, Georgia. CLINCH COUNTY: Okefenokee S"amp and Suwanee River-twelve miles cast of Fargo, Georgia. Entrance to Okefenokee Swamp from southwest corner. Excellent Bass, Bream, Jack, and vVarmouth fishing. Accommodations at Lem Griffis Camp, with rooms and meals furnished. Guide Service. Further information can be had from Chamber of Commerce, \Vaycross, Georgia.
DAY'S OPEN FOR FISHING
BLUE RIDGE MANAGEMENT AREA
ROCK CREEK- July 2-4,9 and 10, 16 and 17,23 and 24, 30 and 31, August 3 and 4, I0 and II, 17 and 18, 24 and 25, September 3-5, I0 and II, I7 and I8, 24 and 25.
NOONTOOTLY CREEK- July 6 and 7, I3 and I4, 20 and 21, 27 and 28, August 6 and 7, I3 and I4, 20 and 21, 27 and 28.
MONTGOl\~IERY CREEK- July 30 and 3I, August I7 and I8. 31, September I, 7 and 8, I4 and 15, 21 and 22, 28 and 29.
CHATTAHOOCHEE-CHESTATEE MANAGEMENT AREA
CHATTAHOOCHEE AND SPOILCANE CREEKS- August 6 and 7, I3 and I4, 20 and 21, 27 and 28, September 3-5.
DUKE'S CREEK- July 2-4, 9 and 10, 16 and 17, 23 and 24, 30 and 3I, August 3 and 4, I0 and 11.
SMITH CREEK- July 6 and 7, I3 and I4, 20 and 21, 27 and 28, August 17 and 18, 24 and 25, 31, September I.
DICKS AND \VATERS CREEKS- July 2-4, 9 and 10, I6 and 17, 23 and 24, 30 and 31.
BOGGS CREEK AND CHESTATEE RIVER- August 3 and 4, 10 and 11, 17 and I8, 24 and 25, 3I, September 1.
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DOCKERY LAKE- August 6 and 7, 13 and 14, 20 and 21, 27 and 28, September 3-5, 10 and 11, 17 and 18, 24 and 25.
LAKE BURTON MANAGEMENT AREA
WILDCAT CREEK- July 2-4, September 3-5, 16-18. MOCCASIN CREEK- July 8-10, August 19-21, September
9-11,23-25. DICKS CREEK-July 16 and 17,23 and 24,30 and 31, August
6 and 7, 13 and 14.
COHUTTA MANAGEMENT AREA
JACKS RIVER AND ROUGH CREEK- July 1-4, 29-31, August 12-14, September 3-5, 16-18.
CONASAUGA RIVER- July 2-4, 8-10, 15-17-22-24, 29-31, August 5-7, 12-14, 19-21, 26-28, September 3-5. All dates above shown, as "September 3-5," are inclusive.
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The Lanier Oak, Brunswick, Georgia. Photo by C. E. Ragland.

GEORGIA'S COASTAL AREA
Georgia's coastal area is the cradle of her history and traditions. Savannah is the "little old lady'' of the state and what a winsome and adorable "old lady" she is!
No more pleasant and interesting spots are to be found f.or vacationing and rest than Savannah and Brunswick with her ''Marshes of Glynn."
THE MARSHES OF GLYNN
By SIDNEY LANIER
"As the marsh-hen secretly builds on the watery sod, Behold I will build me a nest on the greatness of God: I will fly in the greatness of God as the marsh-hen flies In the freedom that fills all the space 'twixt the marsh and the skies: By so many roots as the marsh-grass sends in the sod I will heartily lay me a-hold on the greatness of God: Oh, like to the greatness of God is the greatness within The range of the marshes, the liberal marshes of Glynn. And the sea lends large, as the marsh: lo, out of His plenty the sea Pours fast: full soon the time of the flood-tide must be: Look how the grace of the sea doth go About and about through the intricate channels that flow Here and there, Everywhere, Till His waters have flooded the uttermost creeks and the lowlying lanes, And the marsh is meshed with a million veins, That like as with rosy and silvery essence flow In the rose-and-silver evening glow."
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WHEN SIDNEY LANIER FACED DEATH
By CHARLES L. ALLEN
Years ago, back in the 1870s right after the war, Georgia's finest poet contracted tuberculosis. Sidney Lanier knew he was going to die- it was unheard of to cure tuberculosis in those days- but he did not want to die. He was a man who really knew how to get something out of living.
He could take a muddy, uninteresting river and make it sing"Out of the hills of Habersham, Down through the valleys of Hall ..." He was a man with eyes that could see. But those eyes were soon to be closed and there was nothing he could do about it- or was there?
I was down in Brunswick recently for some speaking engagements and I got to thinking about Sidney Lanier. C?ne afternoon I walked out the road through the "Marshes of Glynn" until I came to that oak tree where he used to go.
He was facing a problem he could not solve. He was beyond human help. He might have become bitter and cursed his fate. He might have become hysterical and had a convenient "nervous breakdown." He might have spent the rest of his days retailing his troubles to whoever "ould listen. He might have grown sorry for himself and escaped in self-pity.
But instead, out under that oak tree that stands today and is appropriately marked, he wrote his finest poem and had his greatest experience. "As a marsh-hen secretly builds her nest on the watery sod, Behold I will build me a nest in the greatness of God."
He died when he was 39, but not before he had learned the meaning of the first Commandment, "Thou shalt have no other gods before me."
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WHY PROTECTION IS NECESSARY
By
A. J. KILPATRICK, M.D.
Augusta, Ga.
Augusta, Ga. May 3, 1949
Mr.]. C. Calhoun, Director State Game and Fish Commission Atlanta, Georgia Dear Sir:
Received my hunting and Fishing License for which I thank you
no little.
You state on this license the following: In the use of this privilege you have an opportunity to render your State and all of her citizens a splendid service by lending your influence and assistance to the State Game and \Vildlife."
In view of my age, past experience and observation, as a bird hunter, both quail (partridge) and doves, and also a fox hunter, I think that some suggestions that I might make may be of value to the bird hunters of our State in the preservation (restoration, conservation and protection) of our fish and wildlife.
Let me make as a preamble the following: I sincerely believe that if every fox, wildcat, skunk, housccat, hungry dog, cottonfield mouse, snake, crow, hawk, and all other predatory animals, reptiles, and birds are destroyed in Georgia today, the quail and clove would become fewer and fewer with each succeeding year and the reason for this amazing and rapid decrease is no other than the man with a gun. All old bird and fox hunters, sixty-five to seventy-five years of age, know this to be true. It is only the younger generation that cannot or will not look back and see from whence we came, that is blaming predators for this marked decrease and well nigh extinction of bird life.
All of us both young and old should try to be honest in facing facts and acknowledge our sins of commission with the gun. I
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was a quailhog in my clay, just as many thousands of Georgians are now, trying to kill them all. There are quail hunters in my locality, when they find the covey, which is rare, they follow it day after clay until not a bird is left. They say, "someone else will get them all, so what's the difference." Doubtless this same sentiment prevails in other counties of Georgia.
Being seventy-fiye years of age, I could take you back to the time and place where all predators and game birds inhabited the same fields and woods. I know because I shot quail and caught fox on the same ground and there was no scarcity of either. About thirty years back (1919) the fox disappeared completely from Middle and East Georgia, but we still had plenty of quail and doves. when the fox came back in 1932 (thirteen years) quail were scarce indeed. What made them scarce and become fewer and fewer every year while there was not a fox in this section? Let's be honest! I killed over five thousand quail and a good many doves and every one was shot before the fox came back seven teen years ago. Incidentally, there used to be dove shoots in East Georgia where 3,000 were killed in one day. Numerous shoots in Middle Georgia produced I ,500. My gun aided in the destruction of I,200 in one day.
Speaking specifically of fox and quail, there are plenty of fox in Richmond County where I live, but no quail. I doubt if fox all over Georgia ever get the opportunity to eat a quail except an occasional wounded or dead one by the shot gun. 'Vith automobiles traveling fifty -one hundred - two hundred miles a day loaded with guns and clogs, the quail's life is about over. Only preserves will have them.
I had a financial interest in a plantation in Burke County with thirty coveys of quail. Bird hunters from Augusta, waynesboro, and Louisville reduced them to one covey in a briar and bamboo pond. This reduction all came about by the shotgun, during the absence of the fox from I919 to 1932. Let's be honest! The shotgun and only the shotgun has ruined the doves and quails in this State. Predators will get one occasionally while the gun gets its thousands every day. I don't love predators, but I'm not
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foolish enough to blame them with the scarcity of bird life. Predators are just one drop in a bucketful of destruction by the shotgun.
If bird hunters don't get predators out of their heads completely and entirely and devote mature thoughts to the man with a gun, their sons will never see a quail and only an occasional dove.
Conclusion, I sincerely believe in the preamble to this article.
Sincerely,
A. J. KILPATRICK, M.D.
1314 Comfort Road Augusta, Georgia
THE REASONS FOR THE NEED OF A WILDLIFE PROGRAM
In the book, "The Road to Survival," by William Vogt, you will find this statement:
"Above all we must realize that every grain of rice, every bit of potato, every piece of meat or kernel of corn or grain of wheat that man puts into his mouth must be replaced by another bit from the earth- somewhere. We must realize that not only does every area have a limited carrying capacity but also the carrying capacity is shrinking and the demand is growing."
This statement should strike Georgians with particular force for it is clear for all, who will, to see that our wildlife areas arc shrinking and the demand of hunters and fishermen are growing.
This is a most important fact and it deserves consideration of every organization that is interested in the welfare of our State.
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"A general decline in numbers of th e mourning do ue was rej1orted this wiutcr."