Journal of the Southeastern Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies

During the wintering seasons of 1965-1967, 706 waterfowl gizzards were collected and subsequent food habit studies were made. The collections represented 14 species of waterfowl (9 species of dabblers and 5 species of divers). Six hundred and five collections constituted the dabbling duck sample and 101 gizzards represented the diving duck sample. The most important foods consumed were from fresh and slightly brackish water habitats. Seeds of marsh plants and vegetative fragments and seeds of pondweeds were the primary foods consumed. Animal foods in the diet were not considered important. The most important food consumed by volume by dabbling ducks was Najas guadalupensis. The most important food consumed by volume by diving ducks was Brasenia schreberi. The plant most frequently used by dabblers was Scirpus validus, while the plant most frequently used by diving ducks was Brasenia schreberi.

Paired plots, seeded with four sizes of lead shot, were established at three locations in an effort to better understand the lead shot problem associated with waterfowl using Catahoula Lake. Half of the plots were treated with a known number of shot in the fall of 1965 and the remainder were similarly treated in the spring of 1966. Soil samples were to be taken in October every two years. In 1967 soil samples were taken and the shot collected were separated according to size and counted. Analysis of data from these samples indicated very little difference in the number of shot recovered when location and plots were considered separately. However, an interaction was apparently responsible for the significant difference detected in the number of pellets recovered. This was probably due to the degree of hog rooting found in the outside plots. The size of shot, or the effect of livestock, apparently had no influence on the depth at which shot were recovered.

Between October, 1965 and April, 1968, 446 adult female cottontail rabbits (Sylvilagus fioridanus) were collected from the Mountain, Pied. mont, and Coastal Plain physiographic regions of Georgia. Prevalence of pregnancy and litter sizes were determined from data on dissected specimens. Although average litter size exhibited a peak of 3.53 in April, no significant differences were noted among months. Also, no significant differences in litter sizes were observed among physiographic regions. Data on prevalence of pregnancy revealed a high percentage of pregnant females in March, April, and May only. Reduced litter sizes, numbers of litters per season, and prevalence of pregnancies indicate lower potential productivity by Georgia cottontails as compared to cottontails from Missouri. A higher potential productivity would appear to be a selective advantage to populations of cottontails in areas where severe climatic conditions might cause significant population declines.

An evaluation of several body measurements for determining age of juvenile cottontail rabbits was undertaken on the Coastal Plains and Piedmont Soils of Alabama from January 1963 to December 1966. Coefficients of variation were calculated, and growth curves were fitted from least squares analyses of measurements of tarsus length, ear length, nose-rump length, and body weight from 151 known-aged cottontails born in pens and raised in large enclosures. Tarsus length provided the best estimate of age in young cottontails. Body weights at birth were greater than weights reported for cottontails from Pennsylvania and Illinois. A loss of body weight following birth was indicated. After approximately 90 days of age, rates of growth for cottontails in this study were slower than rates reported for Wisconsin, Illinois, and Kentucky cottontails. Implications of the slower rate of growth and its effects on sexual maturity and reproduction by young-of-the-year are mentioned.

Ten pairs of pen-reared bobwhite quail (Colinus virginianus virginianus L.) were studied in an effort to determine the mechanical effect of radio-telemetric transmitters on fertilization. Five pairs of quail were equipped with transmitters weighing approximately 24 grams and measuring approximately 2 x 2 x 3.7 centimeters. The remaining 5 pairs without transmitters were maintained under similar conditions. Records were maintained on production, fertility, and hatchability. Such data recorded at two-week intervals throughout the laying season showed that the radio-telemetric transmitters had no adverse effect on the reproductive success of pen-reared quail. The South Carolina Wildlife Resources Department planned a study on the causes of mortality of bobwhite quail (Colinus virginianus virginianus L.) during the nesting season utilizing radio telemetry.

As a waterfowl wintering area, Catahoula Lake is of national significance and one of the most important natural wintering areas in the nation. It is the key to waterfowl abundance and hunting success in Central Louisiana. For a ten year period from fall of 1960, through the winter of 1970, there was a yearly average usage of 20,000,000 duck days for Catahoula Lake (Louisiana Wild Life and Fisheries Commission, 1970). Ducks found in greatest abundance were pintails and mallards. A food habit study of mallards and pintails was conducted to determine foods eaten by these waterfowl. Notes were also made of the food habits of other ducks that use the Lake. During the course of the study, gizzards were collected from 139 ducks and gullets were collected from the same birds when they contain food. Mallard and pintail predominated in the collection with 57 and 42 respectively, and six other species were represented in the 39 other gizzard/gullets.

Trapping, handling, and marking methods were evaluated for wild nutria (Myocastor coypus) in agricultural areas in Louisiana and Texas. Treadle-operated box traps, set on rafts instead of land, increased retrap response and reduced mortality. A modified leg-hitch sling and the tailhold method were found best for simple handling, and a light-weight restraining device was developed for close examination. Sodium pentobarbital injected intrathoracically at 50-60 mg!kg was the safest and most consistent anesthetic; carrot baits treated with diazepam effectively tranquilized nutria for safe handling. Nutria showed gross physiological rejection of nearly all marking materials tested (coloring agents and such objects as tags, flags, pins, and collars attached to or through the skin of various parts of the body). A No.3 self-piercing monel metal animal tag inserted through a web in the hind foot was the only reliable, long-lasting marking method tested, but it was inconspicuous.

Inaccessibility of efficient trapping sites for the European wild hog (Sus scrofa) stimulated the design and use of a portable live trap. Materials for several traps can be transported at one time in a pickup truck and the trap can be assembled by one person in less than 15 minutes. Relatively low cost and convertibility into a larger multi-capture trap are other attributes. A research project involving the live capture of European wild hogs (Sus scrofa) prompted the design and construction of a more portable live trap for this species. Prior to development of this trap, rigid and more stationary traps of the same general appearance were used (Matschke, 1962). Due to the seasonal and altitudinal movements of wild hogs the frequent relocation of traps to new trap sites is necessary for maintenance of trapping success. However, movement and proper placement of large rigid traps were limited to areas readily accessible by means of a pickup truck.

The objective of this project was to determine what inputs were being used in decision making in the Division of Wildlife Refuges, Bureau of Sport Fisheries and Wildlife. The problem of identifying information items or inputs for a management information system is not unique to this agency. All resource management agencies must identify input types and specific input items before the agency can develop or use a management information system. A sample list of decisions was identified from publications and reports. A classification system was developed and the decisions were categorized. A method of collecting inputs for decision-making is described that is considered more efficient than the "collect everything" approach. Inputs used to make the decisions showed considerable overlap of use from decision to decision. An objective and analytical approach using a decision matrix was used to determine the relative value of inputs.

Three hundred and two snipe were collected in an effort to evaluate proposed aging and sexing techniques and to determine a practical method of aging and sexing the common snipe by external characters. Thirty-one external variables were selected for measurement based on their potential to discriminate between ages or sexes of various birds as shown by past studies. The minimum percent misclassification of sexes (28.38%) and ages (22.64%) was obtained when the top 25 sex~ ing and top 22 aging variables were formulated into a discriminant function (Z), constructed so as to minimize the frequency of misclassification when used as a means of discriminating sex and age of snipe. These possible misclassifications were considered too great to accurately sex or age snipe. None of the variations noted in morphological characteristics or in feather color patterns, shades, tints, and shapes could be consistently and accurately related to differences in sex or age of snipe.

Six stocks of Southeastern Micropterus were spawned in earthen ponds, including wild-caught adults of M. coosae (Alabama and Apalachicola races), M. p. punctulatus, M. punctulatus henshalli, and M. notius, and hatchery stock of M. dolomieui. Fry were reared in earthen ponds provided with Pimephales promelas forage. Periodic samples were preserved to determine pigmentation characteristics at different ages and sizes. An illustrated key to species was prepared based on length and juvenal color pattern. Wild-caught specimens of M. salmoides were included for comparison. Color pattern changes progressed at a smaller size in stunted and wild-caught young.

Brood stock of basses were obtained from the following locations during March to April, 1969; Micropterus coosae (Alabama race), Alabama River system; M. coosae (Apalachicola rate), Apalachicola River system; M. notius, Suwannee River system; M. punctulatus henshalli, Tallapoosa River system; M. p. punctulatus, Apalachicola River system; M. dolomieui, Mammoth Spring National Fish Hatchery, Arkansas. Adult bass of each stock except Suwannee bass spawned during April 5 to May 19, 1969, in 0.04- to O.l-acre earthen ponds when stocked at 50 to 100 per acre. Suwannee bass possibly had already spawned in their native habitat. However, Suwannee bass spawned in April during both 1970 and 1971. Surface water temperatures and dates when eggs were first observed were as follows: M. p. henshalli--69 F (April 5, 1969); M. coosae (Alabama race)-73 F (April 14, 1969) ; M. dolomieui--73 F (April 16, 1969); M. p. punctulatus-74 F (May 3, 1969); M.

Seven ponds in South Alabama were stocked with Florida largemouth bass, Micropterus salmoides jloridanus (Lesueur), seven with native largemouth bass, M. s. salmoides (Lacepede), and seven with F, bass. Samples of bass were collected one and two years after stocking to compare growth rates. Major objectives of this study were: to determine which of the three strains of bass grow faster and/or larger in Alabama ponds, to determine if jloridanus can be successfully introduced into an established fish population of a 1,000 acre lake, and to compare the effectiveness of the three strains of bass in maintaining a balanced fish population. All three strains of largemouth bass displayed rapid growth in ponds which did not contain a crowded bass population. The fastest growth observed was that of the F, bass. However, sufficient data has not been obtained in this study to fully evaluate the growth potential of the three strains of largemouth bass. Further evaluation is planned.

Five data collecting stations were designated within Wilkes Reservoir, a 900 surface acre power plant reservoir in Marion County Texas, to gather information relative to the effects of a steam-electric effluent upon aquatic life. Temperature and dissolved oxygen readings were obtained with a YSI model 51A oxygen meter. Readings taken at designated intervals indicated the degree and extent of the heated water. Dissolved oxygen readings indicated no adverse dissolved oxygen concentrations. Twelve species of fish were collected and examined for external and internal parasites. Almost 59% of 161 game fish specimens, and almost 83% of 50 rough fish specimens were parasitized with trematodes, nematodes, cestodes, acanthocephalans, and parasitic copepods. The extent of parasitization in this reservoir indicated optimum or near optimum temperature conditions throughout the year. Parasitic copepods were more evident on bullhead catfish (lctalurus sp.) during February, March, and April.

In 1967 the Arkansas Power and Light Company and the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission cooperated in a joint project to determine any changes in the stratification, flow pattern, and basic water quality in the lower end of Lake Catherine and in the Ouachita River below Remmel Dam as affected by the increased cooling water output and water temperature resulting from the construction of a new power unit proposed for the Lake Catherine Steam Electric Station, Hot Spring County, Arkansas. A follow-up study of the project was conducted in the summer of 1970 to obtain post-installation data to be compared to that information recorded previously in 1967. In connection with this project, nine gill netting samples were made during the period February 25, 1970 to January 16, 1971 to determine the effects of the plant effluent on the distribution of fishes within the receiving embayment.

During the winter of 1970-71, thirteen species of warm-water fishes exhibited external symptoms of gas-bubble disease (mostly "pop-eye") in the discharge canal and cove of a steam generating station. Peak monthly incidences were 70.8, 33.3, and 23.5 percent for white bass, threadfin shad, and bluegill, respectively. Forty-nine percent of the bluegill in excess of 4 inches were afflicted, whereas only 4.4 percent of those under 4 inches exhibited symptoms. Among the bluegill, the right eye only symptoms were more prevalent than were the left eye only symptoms at the 97.5 percent confidence level. Dead fish, principally black crappie, observed in the discharge in February, 1971 did not exhibit external symptoms of gas-bubble disease. However, autopsies of dying black crappie revealed gas emboli in the larger vessels of the gill fragments.

Abandoned manganese strip mines in Smyth County, Virginia have for many years contributed pollution to the streams draining them. Streams in the Cripple Creek drainage area were sampled during the summer of 1967 to determine the nature and extent of pollution in them, and to evaluate the reclamation work being done by the United States Forest Service. Affected streams were compared with control streams on the basis of physical, chemical and biological properties. Manganese levels in all streams sampled were found to be below one part per million. A controlled experiment with Mn(NO')2 showed that the median tolerance limit for rainbow trout fingerlings is about 16 ppm Mn, which, together with stream sampling data, indicates that manganese is not present in toxic concentrations in the study streams. Killinger Creek, which drains a partially reclaimed area, was found to support fewer species of fish and benthic fauna than Crigger Creek, a comparable control stream.

This research study was designed to determine the degree of damage, if any, to fish populations resulting from channelization, and to determine the rate of recovery, if the damage was significant. This study points out the detrimental effects stream channelization has on fish populations and on the flora and bottom fauna of streams. The study also indicates that following channelization, and with no channel maintenance, nature can ultimately restore a coastal plain stream and its fish population to a stage reasonably near its natural condition, provided no further alterations of the stream bed, banks, forest canopy, or aquatic vegetation occur.

Caged Tilapia aurea were cultured for a 10-week period in four experimental ponds (between 10 and 26 acres) to determine how efficiently these fish are able to use plankton as a source of food and to determine the value of Purina Trout Chow and Auburn No.2 as supplemental rations for caged T. aurea in two common types of fertile farm ponds. Fingerling T. aurea were stocked at the rate of 150 fish per 0.25-cubic meter cage (0.956 pounds per cage). There were four cages per pond. Blooms of plankton were produced by inorganic fertilizer in two ponds which contained established bluegill-bass populations, and blooms of plankton were produced by a combination of supplemental feeding of catfish and inorganic fertilizer in the other two ponds which contained catfish under intensive culture. One cage of T. aurea per pond received no supplemental ration. Three cages of T. aurea received supplemental rations six days per week.