The drastic decline in pheasant abundance in east- 
ontral Illinois, which has harbored perhaps as many 
s two-thirds of the state’s pheasant population during 
1e past 30 years, is of critical interest. In both 1958 
nd 1963, the east-central counties of Livingston, Ford, 
oquois, McLean, and Champaign were, in that order, 
1e five top-ranked counties with respect to relative 
oundance of pheasants (Table 2). The relative abun- 
ance of pheasants observed in these counties, collec- 
vely, was 37.9 and 59.4 birds per 100 miles in 1958 
ad 1963, respectively. In 1968, these same five coun- 
es had a collective relative density of 22.4 pheasants 
er 100 miles, a decline of 62 percent from 1963. Fur- 
5 
thermore, by 1968 McLean, Champaign, and Iroquois 
counties had slipped from their traditional positions 
among the five top-ranked counties to occupy positions 
7, 8, and 9, respectively. Notably, the only segment of 
range in Illinois to register a measure of abundance 
exceeding 100 pheasants per 100 miles of driving in 
1958, 1963, and 1968 was that located at the junction 
of Champaign, Vermilion, Douglas, and Edgar counties 
(Fig. 2-4). 
Northern Illinois, characterized by secondary centers 
of pheasant abundance in the 1940’s (Fig. 1), has, in 
the intervening years, suffered a greater proportionate 
loss in pheasant numbers than any other sector of the 
Table 2.—( Continued ) 
Percentage Change 
County Total Pheasants Pheasants Per 100 Miles 
County Rank Reported Per 100 Miles 1958 1963 1058 
1958 :1963 «196819581963 :1968 «195819631968 
onmed 43 34 29 8 18 49 06 1.0 2.3 2G FORE ANGIE 
one 23 35 30 112 PA 35 Bell 1.0 He) —80 +130 —55 
sle 35 Al 31 76 26 119 11455 0.5 WAY —67 +300 —33 
wrroll 33 33 on, 40 39 65 1.9 it 2.0 =—42 +82 +5 
ine 28 28 33 116 98 67 3.6 27 hed 25 —37 —52 
ngamon 47 38 34 iy 43 101 0.3 0.6 15 +100 +4150 +400 
0k 29 30 30 92 61 54 2.8 1.6 1.4 —A3 —12 —50 
ASS 53 36 36 4 18 32 0.2 0.8 1S +300 +50 +500 
u Page 25 28 37 93 1 ileee 35 4.9 4.3 182; —12 —72 —76 
ike 32 Sk 38 60 66 54 2.0 he sei —40 —8 —45 
lreau 38 42 39 66 29 70 ibs) 0.5 1.0 —62 +100 —23 
innebago 36 37 40 46 2 39 15 0.6 1.0 60 +67 —33 
ephenson 22 44 Al 201 18 38 5.4 0.3 0.9 —94 14200 —83 
hiteside 48 47 42 L5 13 39 0.3 0.3 0.8 O07 F167 +167 
ielby 54 39 43 V1 35 40 0.2 0.5 ORG +150 +40 +250 
organ 57 48 44 vy} 5 14 0.1 0.2 0.4 +100 +4100 +300 
ercer 55 43 45 2 15 14 0.1 0.5 0.4 +400 —20 +300 
-nry 34 46 46 88 19 16 1.8 0.3 0.3 —83 0 —83 
ontgomery 60 54 AT 3 4 16 Oat 0.1 0.3 0 +200 +200 
Daviess 39 45 48 37 15 11 122 0.3 0.2 i —33 —83 
ark 27 40 49 63 9 vf 4.2 (Of) 0.2 —88 — 60 —95 
acoupin* 59 50 0 il 8 0.0 00-2 0.1 —ft + _ 
imberland 50 58 51 6 2) 3 0.3 0.1 0.1 —67 0 —67 
ton 64 52 i 0 5 0.0-+ 0.0 0.1 — + + 
ck Island 59 52 53 3 2 3 0.1 0.1 0.1 0 0 0 
oria 46 49 54 16 6 3 0.4 0.1 0.1 — 15 0 —75 
10X 62 ili 55s 2, 8} 2 0.0+ 0.1 0.1 + 0 
fingham 41 56 56 24 2 2 0.8 0.1 0.0-+ — — _ 
snderson 45 issr/ 10 0 1 0.5 0.0 0.0-- — 0 — 
ancock 58 0 0 D; 0.0 0.0 0.0+- 0 + oo 
sper 40 50 59 33 4 2 1.0 0.1 0.0+ — = — 
arren 49 ates 60 9 3 2 0.3 0.1 0.04 — — _ 
awford 61 0 0 1 0.0 0.0 0.0+ 0 o + 
lams 62 0 0 I 0.0 0.0 0.0+ 0 + + 
‘Donough 44 63 19 0 iD 0.6 0.0 0.0+ — + _ 
nd 64 0 0 a 0.0 0.0 0.0+- 0 + + 
ark 56 51 65 3 5 a1 Ct 0.1 0.0-+ 0 — — 
yette 61 66 4 0 1 0.1 0.0 0.0-+ — -. — 
ay 51 5 0 0) 0.3 0.0 0.0 — 0 — 
eene 58 53 2, 3 0 0.1 0.1 0.0 0 — — 
‘sey 60 0 if 0 0.0 0.0-+- 0.0 + = 0 
idison t 61 0 1 0 0.0 0.0-+ 0.0 + = 0 
ce 63 1 0 0 0.0+ 0.0 0.0 — 0 — 
own 0 0 0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0 0 0 
huyler 0 0 0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0 0 0 
ott 0 0 0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0 0 0 
> No rank was assigned to counties from which pheasants were absent in year of census. 
| Percentage change presented only as + (gain) 
cluding 0.0 +) in any of the three census periods. : 
' Richland County was censused in place of Madison County in 1958. 
, — (loss), or 0 (no change) for those counties from which pheasants were reported absent 
