MONTHLY WILDLIFE RESEARCH LETTER 
Vol. 2, No. 7 
Page 3 
females and 28 were males. Of the 31 young-of-the-year opossums later live-trapped 
separately, nine (29 per cent) had been toe-clipped while in the pouch and repre¬ 
sented 8.8 per cent of the pouch young that had been toe-clipped. 
W-61-R-3 F. Greeley, J. Ellis 
A job completion report on the distribution of pheasants in Illinois was 
prepared. Data from rural mail carrier counts of pheasants were analyzed. The 
results indicated that there was a 10 to 20 per cent decline in the state's 
pheasant population between 1957 and 1958. During this same period, decline in 
pheasants was reported by biologists in Wisconsin and Michigan, but large increases 
were reported in the states to the west of Illinois. 
The thickness of the shells of pheasant eggs was found to be signifi¬ 
cantly correlated to the amount of calcium in the diet of the hen, table 1. 
The average thickness of the shells of 309 eggs from wild hens on the 
Sibley area was 254 t 1 micra. The thickness of the shells of eggs from the 
Sibley area was equal to that of shells from game-farm hens fed two per cent 
of calcium in the diet. 
Table 1.—The thickness of eggshells from hen pheasants fed different 
amounts of calcium. 
Per Cent of Calcium 
in the Diet 
Number 
of Eggs 
Thickness of 
Shell (micra) 
0.37 
17 
213 
11 
0.63 
48 
220 
5 
1.09 
61 
223 
4 
2.01 
198 
254 
1 
2.34 
243 
270 
1 
Continued field work was directed toward locating pheasant broods on the 
Neoga and Bellmont areas during July. Seven broods that had not been previously 
observed were located on the Bellmont area during July. A total, of 19 broods 
have been located on the area during the 1959 breeding season. The average size 
of all - h..T>ods was 6.0 chicks per brood and the average age for all broods was 5.9 
weeks. Twenty-three adult pheasant hens were observed n.n the area during July; 
eleven (48 per cent) of the 2J hens were accompanied by broods. 
One hundred and seventy-five miles of road were cruised during early 
morning cn the Neoga area, but no broods were observed during these counts.. Four 
