NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY 
JUL 141975 
MONTHLY WILDLIFE RESEARCH LETTER 
Department of Conservation and Natural History Survey, Cooperating 
Glen C. Sanderson and Helen C. Schultz, Editors 
LIBRARY 
Urbana, Illinois 
June, 1975 
Vol. 18, No. 6 
Manipulation of Pheasant Habitat 
R. E. Warner 
Early morning roadside counts of pheasants on the Sibley Study Area (SSA) 
were made on eight consecutive mornings, 15 April through 22 April 1975* A 
total of 511 pheasants (130 cocks, 381 hens) were observed over 194 miles of 
driving. The number of pheasants observed per mile (2.6) in 1975 was approxi¬ 
mately 50 percent fewer than had been observed in April 1974 and 2 percent 
fewer than in April 1973* 
Early morning roadside counts for the Ford County Management Unit (FCMU) 
were made on 21, 23, and 25 May 1975* A total of 282 pheasants (111 cocks, 171 
hens) were observed over the 120 miles of driving (40 miles per morning). The 
number of pheasants observed per mile (2.4) in 1975 was approximately 59 percent 
fewer than had been observed in May 1974 and 67 percent fewer than in May 1973* 
Thus, the spring roadside counts in 1975 reflect the decline in pheasant 
numbers that resulted from the poor nest success in 1974 (MWRL 17(9):1~2)• 
Favorable weather facilitated early planting of row crops in 1975* Most 
area farmers completed planting by about 15 May. As a result, there was con¬ 
siderable early mowing of roadsides and hayfields. Most hayfields on the SSA 
and FCMU had been harvested by 14 June, so that a large percentage of early 
nests were destroyed. 
It is most significant to this study that approximately 25 percent of the 
roadsides on the FCMU were mowed by 1 June this year (1975)• Since that date, 
periodic rainfall, cultivation activities, and (possibly) IDC press releases 
encouraging support for delayed mowing have contributed to the discontinuation 
of most mowing activities on the FCMU and much of Ford County during June. 
Observations of the number of unmowed roadsides as well as contacts with farmers 
indicate that public acceptance of the importance of delayed mowing may be 
expanding in areas adjacent to the FCMU. The apparent acceptance by farmers 
of the concept of delayed mowing to provide essential nest cover for pheasants 
is one that should be stressed and evaluated more extensively in 1976. 
C. M. Nixon, 
S. P. Havera 
Ecology and Management of Sguirrels 
The Old Barn sale, featuring a 27-acre intermediate cut and a 7-acre clear- 
cut, is the second area used to monitor the effects of intermediate cutting on 
sguirrels. 
