Vol. 13, No. 2 
Page 2 
soybeans are much higher. Experience with spraying along secondary roadsides 
in the spring over the past several years has shown that wind velocities beyond 
those considered safe are the rule rather than the exception on most days from 
April through mid-June. Thus, a crew dealing with many miles of roadside would 
have to cover a rather large area on those days when wind conditions were 
favorable. On the other hand, section crews working relatively small areas 
might accomplish three sprayings with minimum risk. Also, there are probably 
more sophisticated and less volatile sprays than 2,4-D which can control 
roadside weeds with fewer than three applications and/or with a minimum risk. 
Another point relating to unmowed backslope areas adjacent to agricultur¬ 
al land is to allow farmers to mow at their discretion after reasonable efforts 
have been made by the Division of Highways to control broadleaf weeds. This, 
in essence, is what took place on the typical highway roadside north of Strawn 
in I 969 . By mid-August, virtually all backslope areas along the 2.25 miles had 
been mowed by farmers. Perhaps this is a means for dramatically reducing the 
mowing costs over large areas and at the same time allowing individual farmers 
to exercise some control over the appearance of the backs lopes adjacent to their 
farms. 
3. Factors Influencing Distribution and Abundance of pheasants W. L. Anderson 
Data compiled during the past 2 years indicate that, of 62 chemical 
elements investigated, sodium is the most likely to be limiting the distribu¬ 
tion and abundance of pheasants in Illinois. Sodium, an essential ion, was 
the only element that was less abundant, Neoga (poor pheasant range) compared 
with Sibley (good range), in both unsorted grit (all grit found in soil) and 
in pheasants. The magnitude of the potential deficiency in unsorted grit from 
Neoga was by a factor of four: sodium averaged 10,600+2,600 ppm in samples 
from Sibley but only 2,400+1,300 ppm in samples from Neoga. Sodium was also 
the only element except lead that was less abundant in calcitic grit (grit 
that is predominantly calcium carbonate) from Neoga than in calcitic grit from 
Sibley. 
Information in the literature suggests that corn and foxtail--and 
presumably many other grains and seeds--do not contain enough sodium to fulfill 
the minimal sodium requirements for pheasants. The sodium content of corn and 
foxtail averages 71+8 and 102+25 ppm, respectively, at Sibley, and 60+9 and 
103+5 PP m » respectively at Neoga. Yet, growing pheasants require approximately 
850 ppm of sodium in their diet. During the warmer months pheasants undoubtedly 
obtain appreciable amounts of sodium from green plants and invertebrates they 
consume. Red clover, for instance, contains an average of 800 ppm of sodium 
on a dry-weight basis. But, during the colder months, when their diet is 
predominantly grains and seeds, pheasants presumably would have to obtain sodium 
from inorganic sources. Unlike calcium, large quantities of physiologically- 
available sodium are not stored in the skeleton. 
If the daily diet of a pheasant consists of 35 g of corn, the bird would 
have to obtain approximately 27,500 ^jg of sodium per day from sources other 
than the corn. To obtain this sodium from unsorted grit, the pheasant would 
have to consume 2.6 g of unsorted grit from Sibley or 11 .5 g of unsorted grit 
