DELTA WATERFOWL RESEAR ( 
 
 
                               Delta, Manitoba June ?20,194F 
                                   Canada 
Dear A.L.:- 
       The comings and going around this place have been a fright. At 
the moment there is a brief quiet spell,~wam however, and I am taking 
a turn with this machine for a change. I have counted on Lyle and Art 
keeping you in touch; I have been keeping away from office work for a 
spell trying to shake a sinus infection rhich apoprently was what hit 
md in Madison. 
 
       Bob is still here, having made a very thorough air tour of the 
waterfowl breeding grounds of southern Manitoba. At has traveled with 
him most of the time, although Lyle has been on some of the trips and 
Pete has helped him fly some. They have their plane parked over in the 
pasture and go up for a flip whenever weather permits. They are developing

me* a new technique and any of the shortbrief att Ummw gfi"surveys"
am5 
memuti up to this date on the breeding grounds are merely fRlse starts. 
These fellows are going to really get some stuff. However, I shall let 
them tell you about it. Enough to Pay thet things are going well and 
they are getting a good beginning on mhat I hope will be a four or five-year

job. 
       I was extremely disapnointed at first because Lyle and Art didn't

hit it off at all tokether and things got very strained -- almost to the

point of a show-dorn. Bdb and I were aftreid the whole cart was going to

be upset. It turned out that both their noses were simply out of joint. 
Art felt that Lyle didn't want to show him the advance material he had;and

Lyle felt that Art didn't want to see his stuff. We finally got them 
together and everything in hitting along on all foura.   Lyle is getting

a lot of new and first rate population dope. Is beginning to mark some 
territorial pairs and plans an intensive study witt marked birds next year.

We should get all kinds of stuff from a careful study of known individuals.

He tried imping feathers and the other techniques, but so far oil paint of

various hues applied with carbon tot as the solvent seems to be best and

is far more simple than the other methods. 
 
       The waterfowl situation is worse then anybody smtpaem realizes. At

leatt it is so at Delta andwhile I will let them speak for themselies, Art

and Bob are finding everywhere low populations. The breeding population at

Delta, based on careful counts made in '"8 on special areas, besides
menory, 
is far below the 1938 population. We heve but a fraction of the breeding

 
 
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