MONTHLY WILDLIFE RESEARCH LETTER 
Department of Conservation and Natural History Survey, Cooperating 
Glen C. Sanderson and Helen C. Schultz, Editors 
Urbana, Illinois 
October, 1972 
Vol. 15, No. 10 
Manipulation of Pheasant Habitat 
G. B. Joselyn 
Densities of pheasant nests in 1972 on seeded roadside plots averaged 2.5 
nests per acre, a 29 percent decline in the rate of establishment from 1971 
(3*5 nests per acre). Nest densities in 6 of the past 10 years were higher 
than the density in 1972. High density for the period was 3*8 nests per acre 
(1964); the low was 1.7 nests per acre ( 1969 ). 
Nest densities on managed control roadside plots in 1972 averaged 1.3 
nests per acre, representing a 46 percent decline from the average of 2.4 
nests per acre in 1971* The density in 1972 is identical to that in 1969 and 
represents the lowest density on these plots in the past 10 years. The highest 
density recorded on managed control plots was 2.8 nests per acre in 1 963 . 
Ecology and Management of Squirrels C. M. Nixon, 
R. E. Greenberg 
Among the most important factors in the management of squirrels are the 
regulations under which they are hunted. The timing of the open season is 
particularly significant. In Illinois, the squirrel season has traditionally 
opened on August 1 in the Southern Conservation Zone and on September 1 in 
the Northern Zone. This year (I 972 ), the season closes November 15 in both 
zones. How does the season in Illinois compare with squirrel seasons in 
surrounding states? 
In Wisconsin, the season opens on September 30 and closes January 31* 
In Indiana, the season opens on August 15 and closes October 13* In Kentucky, 
the season opens on August 19 and closes October 31, then reopens on November 
16 and closes December 31* In Missouri, the season opens on May 30 and closes 
December 31* The opening date of the season in Iowa is September 9 and the 
closing date has not yet been set. 
The differences in squirrel seasons among the states are due largely to 
tradition. The squirrel season opens concurrently with other upland game 
seasons in Wisconsin and Iowa. Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, and Missouri 
provide a separate season for squirrels before the general upland game seasons 
open. 
The lengths of the Illinois squirrel seasons (106 days in the Southern 
Zone, 75 days in the Northern Zone) are conservative when compared with the 
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NATURAL HISTORT SURVEY 
NOV 7 1972 
