MONTHLY WILDLIFE RESEARCH LETTER 
Department of Conservation and Natural History Survey, Cooperating 
T. G. Scott, Editor 
Urbana, Illinois 
September 1959 
Vol. 2, No. 9 
W-30-R-13 R. F. Labisky 
Field investigations of the reproductive ecology of pheasants on the 
intensively cultivated Sibley area in 1959 were completed in September. The 100, 
randomly selected 10-acre study plots (representing a 4.3 per cent sample of the 
23,200-acre study area) that were searched for nests in 1957 and 1958 were again 
searched in 1959. The search in 1959 yielded 236 nests, or 11.3 per cent fewer 
nests than were located in 1958 when 266 nests were found. In 1957, only 124 
pheasant nests were found on the study plots. Comparisons of establishment and 
success of pheasant nests as related to cover types for the 1957, 1958, and 1959 
nesting seasons are summarized in table 1. 
Table 1. A comparison of establishment and success of pheasant nests by 
cover type, Sibley study area, 1957, 1958, and 1959. 
Cover types _ Nests Established _ Nests Successful 
1957 
1958 
1959 
1957 
1958 
1959 
Row Crops 
0.0(0) 
0.0(0) 
0.0 
0.0(0) 
0.0(0) 
0.0(0) 
Small Grains 16.1(20)* ** 
7.9(21) 
24.2(57) 
55.0(11) 
33.3(7) 
38.6(22) 
Hayfields 
(Tame) 
46.8(58) 
69.9(186) 
44.9(106) 
32.8(19) 
31.2(58) 
19.8(21) 
Pastures (Tame 
and Wild) 
24.2(30) 
6.0(16) 
14.4(34) 
16.7(5) 
50.0(8) 
17.6(6) 
Strip-Cover 
Non-Agri- 
12.1(15) 
15.8(42) 
13.1(31) 
40.0(6) 
11.9(5) 
22.6(7) 
cultural 
Totals 
0.3(1) 
0.4(1) 
3.4(8) 
100.0(1) 
100.0(1) 
0.0(0) 
or Means 
ICO.0(124) 
100.0(266) 
100.0(236) 33.9+8.4^(42) 
29.7+6.5(79) 
23.7+5.5(56) 
*The first figure is the per cent of the total number of nests found; the 
figure within parentheses is the number of nests found. 
**Fiducial limits at 0.05 level. 
W-42-R-9 R. D. Lord 
A three year study of reproduction in cottontails, involving nearly 1,C00 
rabbits, showed that the average monthly prevalence of pregnancy and litter size 
reported in a paper given at the 23rd North American Wildlife Conference were 
OCT 9 1959 
NATURAL 
HISTORY SURVEY 
LIBRARY 
