VoI. 15, No. 12 
Page 2 
Manipulation of Pheasant Habitat G. B. Joselyn 
Because unmanaged control plots represent "typical'* roadsides on the study 
area (in that mowing is not controlled), differences in pheasant nest densities 
between this type of roadside and seeded plots are considered the best indicators 
of the response by pheasants to the seeding of roadsides. 
For the 10 years, 1963-72, pheasant nest density on seeded plots (2.7 nests 
per acre) was 2.4 times that on all (mowed and unmowed) unmanaged control plots 
(1.1 nests per acre). Nest density on seeded plots was 3*4 times that on mowed, 
unmanaged control plots (0.8 nest per acre) but only about 1.4 times greater 
than the density on unmanaged control roadsides that were unmowed (1.9 nests 
per acre), thus indicating that merely leaving roadsides unmowed could result 
in meaningful benefits to nesting pheasants. 
Ecology and Management of Sguirrels C. M. Nixon, 
R. E. Greenberg 
Hickory seed has long been recognized as a staple food of gray and fox 
squirrels throughout their range in eastern North America. Hickory seed is 
usually cached or eaten by squirrels before extensive feeding on acorns begins, 
and squirrel hunters usually concentrate their hunting efforts in or around 
hickory groves in early fall. 
The size of the hickory seed crop may be very important to the maintenance 
of gray squirrel populations. During a 10-year study to determine the effects 
of oak and hickory seed crops on a gray squirrel population, the fall-to-fall 
survival rate of adult gray squirrels was significantly correlated (r = + 0 . 89 , 
£<0.05) with the size of the hickory seed crop. 
Hickory seed kernels are higher in fat content and in calories per gram 
of dry weight than are acorns. Squirrels feeding on a bumper crop of hickory 
seed gain weight rapidly during the fall months and enter the winter months in 
prime condition. Winter survival of all age-classes for both species of 
squirrels probably depends on their physical condition when winter begins, 
particularly in northern Illinois, and access to plentiful supplies of hickory 
seed materially improves the condition of squirrels and thus their chances of 
winter survival. 
Responses of Bobwhites to Habitat Manipulation J* A. Ellis 
For the years 1964-70, hunting has removed 32 to 74 percent (X * 59) of the 
fall populations of quail on Forbes and 54 to 81 percent (X = 68) on Dale. The 
quail populations on these areas have remained markedly unaffected by this degree 
of utilization. No relationship existed between proportionate harvest levels 
and subsequent fall populations. 
Furthermore, significant negative correlations (£<0.01) were found between 
