Vol. 15, No. 5 
Page 2 
Of 130 farm operators whose lands are adjacent to the 64.5 miles of 
graded roadside, 120 (92 percent) agreed, when contacted by Department 
biologists, to allow the Department to seed their roadsides, and to refrain 
from mowing until on or after July 31 each year after the seedings mature. 
Plans were made to seed these roadsides during August and September 1971, 
but the late arrival of seed precluded the seeding operation at that time. 
Wet weather during March and April of this year has further delayed the 
seedings, which are now scheduled for this coming August and September. 
Ecoloqy and Management of Squirrels C. M. Nixon, 
R. E. Greenberg 
Hunter satisfaction with the squirrel season depends largely on hunter 
success in bagging squirrels--especially during the opening weekend, when 
hunting pressure is highest. 
Our sample of 59 avid squirrel hunters in the Southern Zone averaged 
2.93 squirrels killed per hunter trip during the hunting season of 1971- 
Hunting success was lowest during the opening 2 weeks of the season (2.49 
squirrels killed per trip), despite heavy hunting pressure, probably 
because squirrels are difficult to find in heavy summer foliage until they 
begin "cutting" seed crops about mid-August. Hunter success increased 
sharply during the last half of August (3*00 squirrels killed per hunter 
trip) and maintained a high level (2.91 or more) throughout the rest of 
the season. The highest success rate (3-43 squirrels killed per hunter 
trip) was attained during the October 16-31 period, at a time when seed 
crops had fallen from the trees and squirrels were actively foraging for 
and caching seed. 
Responses of Bobwhites to Habitat Manipulation J« A. Ellis 
Censuses of quail were made on the Forbes and Dale areas in early 
January to obtain estimates of the posthunt population densities. Fifteen 
coveys, 151 quail (6.2 quail per 100 acres), were observed on Forbes. The 
posthunt estimate for Forbes in 1972 was 14 percent lower than was recorded 
in 1971 and was also 14 percent lower than the long-term mean for the 
posthunt estimates. The posthunt estimate for 1972 represented a decline 
of 61 percent from the estimated prehunt population in 1971* 
Eleven coveys containing 120 birds (10.9 quail per 100 acres) were 
observed on Dale during the posthunt census in 1972. The posthunt estimate 
in 1972 was 24 percent lower than that of 1971 and 17 percent less than the 
long-term mean for the posthunt population. The quail population on Dale 
declined 60 percent from early November to January. On both areas, harvests 
accounted for more than 90 percent of the population losses from November 
to January. 
