56 Game Survey of the North Central States 



The survey disclosed a few instances of alleged antipathy between species. 

 Thus Scott Patterick, a sportsman of Berlin, Wisconsin, while driving near Aship- 

 pun, Dodge County, in April, 1929, saw a cock pheasant alight near seven or eighr 

 quail. The pheasant seized a cock quail, shook it, and pulled its head off. 



It is not intended to imply whether or not this instance is representative. It 

 is recorded merely to illustrate the need for a competent study of inter-species 

 relationships under controlled conditions. 



Non-Breeding Covies. In the western species of quails the existence of 

 non-breeding covies during drought years is an established fact. 



The survey disclosed one report of a non-breeding covey of bobwhites. 

 Harry Decker, a sportsman of Winemac, Pulaski County, Indiana, reports that a 

 covey five miles north of Winemac remained intact throughout the breeding season 

 of 1927. He states that the covey was observed to contain both sexes. 



The local weather record was not examined to determine a possible cause of 

 this extraordinary behavior. The game department reported 1927 as an espe- 

 cially good quail year for the State as a whole. Probably some local environ- 

 mental factor was responsible. 



There is no evidence that non-breeding covies are frequent in bobwhite. The 

 careful study of individual instances, however, might reveal facts usable in en- 

 hancing breeding vigor of normal covies. 



Diseases. Very little is known of the diseases of wild bobwhites in the 

 north central region, or in fact any region except Georgia. With few exceptions, 

 nothing can be said, except by analogy with Stoddard's work there. 



The most suggestive single discovery is Green's (1929) report on a case of 

 tularemia in a wild quail near St. Paul. Only one bird showed a positive reaction. 



Errington (unpublished) has found dispharynx in Wisconsin quail. 



In a later caption it will be pointed out that winter losses in quail frequently 

 coincide with winter losses in grouse and with cyclic mortality in grouse. There 

 may be some connection. 



Some sportsmen recall what they took to be disease in quail. Thus in 1925 

 near St. Louis, quail are said to have had "white diarrhoea" in conjunction with a 

 short crop and an undue proportion of "squealers" or immature birds. Accord- 

 ing to the weather record 1925 was an extra dry summer near St. Louis. 



This report is valuable only in indicating something to look for. 



Diseases, especially poultry diseases, in all probability affect quail in this 

 region. Much more thorough research in diseases is required as one of the 

 foundations of skillful management. 



Phenology. In the planning of both management and research work on 

 quail, it is convenient to have a record of the dates and sequence of the important 

 events of the quail year. Information of this kind was collected during the sur- 

 vey, but its volume is too great to justify separate tables for each State. There 

 follows, however, an idealized composite for an average State (let us say Illinois 



