Vol. 14, No. 4 
Page 2 
2. Manipulation of Pheasant Habitat G. B. Joselyn 
The cooperative project for the experimental management of roadside 
cover along Highway 47, involving the Illinois Division of Highways, the 
Department of Conservation, and the Natural History Survey, was outlined 
in a previous report (Ml/RL 12(12): 1-2). This is a study of the feasibility 
of managing vegetative cover, along a state primary highway, to benefit 
song and game birds: cover that is compatible with the basic objectives of 
roadside maintenance and the safe, orderly movement of vehicular traffic. 
The 3 miles (both sides) of unmowed seeded roadsides have presented a 
relatively weed-free end uniform appearance. No complaints about the 
seedings have been received from either the motoring public or the adjacent 
farm operators. Comparisons, during 1 969 ar| d 1970, of the frequency of 
pheasant roadki11s adjacent to the seeded plots with those adjacent to 
nearby unseeded and mowed roadsides showed no differences for both sexes 
combined, no differences for hens alone, but significantly more cock 
pheasants killed adjacent to seedings than adjacent to unseeded roadsides 
(MWRL 14(2):1-2). The meaning of these data is unclear at this point, as 
the small sample of seeded roadsides (3 miles) precludes any definitive 
assessment of the effect of seedings on the frequency of roadki11s. This 
would be true regardless of whether the data showed an increase, no change, 
or a decrease in the frequency of roadki11s adjacent to unmowed seeded 
plots as compared with mowed unseeded roadsides. 
For this reason, the Division of Highways agreed to increase the number 
of seeded roadsides involved in the project. The greater number of seedings 
will allow a more exact evaluation of the question of pheasant roadki1 Is. 
The project has been expanded to include seedings along 16 miles of roadside 
(on both sides) of the 68 miles of highways from Forrest to Gilman (Highway 
24), Gilman to Ashkum (Highways 54-45), Ashkum to Saunemin (Highway 116), 
and Saunemin to Forrest (Highway 47). Since highway roadsides in three 
counties (Ford, Livingston, and Iroquois) are involved, the segment has been 
designated the F.L.I. Area. Brome and alfalfa were seeded (on the backslopes 
only) by personnel of the Department of Conservation and a local farmer 
during the week of April 12-16. Seeded areas will remain unmowed. Beginning 
in 1972, the F.L.I. Area will be driven at regular intervals during the 
spring and early summer in an attempt to detect any differences in the 
frequency of pheasant roadkills adjacent to seeded and unseeded roadsides. 
3. Ecolo gy and Management of Squirrels C. M. Nixon 
Livetrapping of fox squirrels was undertaken for 9 consecutive days 
during February 1971 to derive an estimate of the number of squirrels 
wintering on a 46-acre, mature oak-hickory forest located within the 
Allerton Park Sanctuary. Traps were placed at random, one trap per 0.889 
acre, and baited with English walnuts. 
A total of 29 squirrels were captured one or more times, and estimates 
of population size were derived from the frequency distribution of all 
captures. An estimate of 43 squirrels was derived from a linear regression 
