The Department of the Interior said today a recheck of the 1963 midwinter waterfowl survey data for the Mississippi Flyway reveal on an overall increase in the numbers of ducks, geese and coots of 14 percent above the average for the past ten years—not below the average, as calculated earlier.
Observations of mallards, the Flyway’s most popular duck, shows a 37 percent increase in the tally over last winter’s survey. However, they still are 27 percent below the ten-year average. Considerably more pintails also were observed this year, but the numbers of other kinds of dabbling ducks seen were either unchanged or lower.
Diving ducks were observed during the survey in about the same numbers as a year ago. The popular canvas back continued comparatively scarce.
Mississippi Flyway goose observations apparently indicated a new high due to the large number of Canada geese observed. The numbers of blue and snow geese recorded were about average.
Not as many coots were counted compared with 1962, but they still were above the ten-year average.
Among the fourteen States include in the Mississippi Flyway, three held most of the ducks. Louisiana had 61 percent, Arkansas 16 percent, and Illinois 10 percent. The other states in the Mississippi Flyway are Alabama, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Ohio, Tennessee and Wisconsin. Eight-five percent of the ducks tallied in the flyway were found in the six southern States.
The extensive survey covers wintering areas of Mexico and Canada as well as all the States. It is coordinated by the Fish and Wildlife Service’s Bureau of Sport Fisheries and Wildlife.
