32 



FISH AND GAME COMMISSION 



Fig. 8 



evaluation of certain diseases of wildlife has been based on the findings 

 in similar domestic species but we are finding, as in the case of coccidiosis 

 in valley quail, that the picture may be vastly different in many respects 

 and therefore requires a different method of approach and interpre- 

 tation. Whereas in poultry coccidiosis soil contamination appears to 

 be an important factor, it does not seem to be involved in the spread of 

 coccidiosis among the wild quail. Analysis of over 500 soil samples 

 from quail concentration spots from three areas in the State, where 

 eoccidia were found to be very prevalent in the quail, revealed prac- 

 tically none of the resistant stages found in soil examinations of poultry 

 runs. 



A number of doves in California in recent years have been found 

 infected with a disease of the throat. This is usually easily recognized 

 by the presence of yellowish masses in the back of the mouth. These 

 lesions may vary in size from hardly noticeable dots to a mass or masses 

 sufficient in bulk to occlude the passage of food. It is assumed that in 



