Vol. 4,No. 9 
Page 2 
nests which had been incubated, and by backdating to hatching 42 young pheasants 
captured by night-lighting, and aged according to the succession of their molt 
of primary flight feathers, during September. A similar disagreement in the tim¬ 
ing of the midpoint of hatch occurred in 1960. Apparently broods hatched later 
in the nesting season are not as readily observed as those hatched earlier in the 
season. 
To determine the presence of calcareous grit in gizzards of pheasants that 
were collected on an area (Sibley) that was recently glaciated as opposed to an 
area (Neoga) not recently glaciated, grit was removed from 178 pheasant gizzards 
that were collected on the Sibley and Neoga study areas during the past few 
years. Gizzards (128) collected on the Sibley area represented all months of the 
year except September, whereas gizzards (50) collected from pheasants on the Neoga 
area represented only 6 monthly periods. Chemical analyses revealed that calcar¬ 
eous grit comprised 4.0 per cent of the total grit removed from Sibley birds 
compared to 7.5 per cent from Neoga birds. During the nesting season (April, 
May, and June), 10 per cent of the grit removed from the gizzards of hens collec¬ 
ted at Sibley and 9.6 per cent of the grit removed from the gizzards of hens 
collected at Neoga was calcareous. These data tentatively suggest that pheas¬ 
ants are obtaining calcareous grit on both areas, and possibly refute the hypo¬ 
thesis that a deficiency of calcium is a factor limiting the distribution of 
pheasants in Illinois. 
4. Rabbit Management R. D. Lord, D. A. Casteel 
The two Allerton Park study areas and the two McDonough County study areas 
were prepared for the beginning of the fall trapping by clearing and mowing grid 
lines. Trapping was begun in the middle of the month and has proceeded satisfac¬ 
torily on all areas. Aerial photographs were made of the Allerton areas, but 
overcast conditions prevented aerial photography of the McDonough County areas. 
A total of ten radio transmitters for use in tracking rabbits were constructed, 
and the first draft of the publication describing the radio tracking system has 
been completed. The project leader has received an unusually large number of 
letters of inquiry concerning this system which, of course, has application to 
other species of wildlife. 
5. In vestigations of Furbearers Ralph J. Ellis 
The nocturnal movements of a juvenile female raccoon were determined at inter¬ 
vals during a two-week period in August, 1961, by using radio-tracking equipment. 
The results suggested that this animal was living on approximately 165 acres. 
Normally, this raccoon used only about 1 acre per night. However, she covered 
nearly half the estimated home range one night subsequent to being disturbed by 
hounds. It is probable that the movements of this juvenile also represent those 
of a family group because raccoon families normally do not disperse until late 
fall. 
The radio-tracking evidence just discussed depicts a home range approximately 
three times as large as the average home range calculated from trapping data re¬ 
presenting 22 animals of various ages on the same area. Possibly the raccoon 
