Mammals of Illinois.—The following list includes all of the species of mammals now living in Illinois or known to have lived in the state since first visited by the white man. The limits of space permit the use of only the common names for family and species: I. Opossum Family. 1. Virginian opossum.
II. Deer Family. 2. Virginia deer, White-tailed deer. 3. Northern White-tailed deer. -1. American elk.
III. Cattle Family. 5. American bison or buffalo.
1V. Squirrel Family. 6. Southern flying squirrel. 7. fox squirrel. S. Southern gray squirrel. 9. Northern gray squirrel.
10. Southern red squirrel. I1. Chipmunk. 12. Cray-striped chipmunk. 13. Striped ground squirrel, "Gopher." 14. Frank lin's ground squirrel, "Gray gopher." 15. Woodchuck, Ground hog.
V. Beaver Family. 16. Beaver.
VI. Family of Rats and Mice. 17. house mouse. IS. Norway rat, House rat. 19. White-footed mouse. 20. Northern white-footed mouse. 21. Prairie white-footed mouse. 22. Western cotton mouse. 23. Southern golden mouse. 24. Rice field mouse. 25. Illinois wood rat. 26. Meadow mouse. 27. Prairie meadow mouse. 28. Mole mouse. 29. Muskrat. 30. Goss's lemming mouse.
VII. Pocket Gopher Family. 31. Pocket gopher.
VIII. Jumping Mouse Family. 32. Hudson Bay jumping mouse.Viii. Jumping Mouse Family. 32. Hudson Bay jumping mouse.
IX. Rabbit Family. 33. Cotton-tail rabbit, Gray rabbit. 3-1. Swamp rabbit.
X. The Cat Family. 35. Panther, Cougar. 36. Canada lynx. 37. Wild cat, Bay lynx, Bob cat.
XI. Wolf Family. 38. Gray fox. 39. Wisconsin gray fox. 40. Red fox. 41. Prairie wolf, Coyote.
XII. Otter Family. 42. Canada otter. 43. Northern skunk. 44. Illi nois skunk. 45. Alleghenian spotted skunk. 46. American badger. 47. Mink. 4S. New York weasel. '49. Fisher.
XIII. Raccoon Family. 50. Raccoon.Xiii. Raccoon Family. 50. Raccoon.
XIV. Bear Family. 51. Black bear.
XV. Shrew Family. 52. Common shrew. 53. Carolina shrew. 54. Mole shrew. 55. Carolina short-tailed shrew. 56. Small short tailed shrew.
XVI. Mole Family. 57. Prairie mole. 58. Star-nosed mole.
XVII. Bat Family. 59. Little brown bat. 60. Gray bat. 61. Say's bat. Xvii. Bat Family. 59. Little brown bat. 60. Gray bat. 61. Say's bat. 62. Silver-haired bat. 63. Georgian bat. 64. Brown bat. 65. Red bat. 66. Hoary bat. 67. Rafinesque An examination of the list shows that the 67 species of Illinois mammals are distributed among 17 families; each of 7 families is represented by a single species; 6 other families have 2, 3, 4, or 5 species each; of the 4 remaining families, the Otter Family is represented in Illinois by S species; the Bat Family by 9 species; the Squirrel Family by 10 species; and the family of Rats and Mice by 14 species.
If the 17 families be grouped from the standpoint of the size of the animals, 7 families may be designated as small, 7 as medium, and 3 as large. The 7 families of small mammals include 42 of the 67 species varying in size from the smallest of mice to the largest of the squirrels. The 7 families whose members are here considered as medium sized include 20 species varying in size from the rabbit and opossum to the wolf and the beaver. The 3 families of large mammals include 5 species the Virginia Deer, the Northern White-tailed Deer, the American Elk, the Black Bear, and the American Bison or Buffalo.
Birds of Illinois.---In Illinois there have been found 365 species of birds. The following list includes 141 species of the more common birds. Probably 101) of these can be found in almost any county of the state.
The foregoing is but a partial list of birds now found within the state.
Of the 365 species of birds which have been found in Illinois, 129 arc classified as water birds and 236 as land birds. These include a total of 52 families. Each of 13 families is represented by a single species; 12 other families are each represented by 2 species; 16 additional families are each represented by fewer than 10 species, and 6 families have 10 to 13 species each. The 5 remaining families contain 180 species, or nearly one-half of the total for the state. The Hawk Family has 26 species; the Snipe Family 28; the Warbler Family 39; the Duck Family 41; and the Sparrow Family 46.
The large number and great variety of species of birds in Illinois at present indicate that the conditions for bird life throughout the state are still good, although not so favorable as originally. The bird life of small areas has been carefully and scientifically studied in some portions of the state. Mr. Robert Ridgway has observed 134 species on Bird Haven, a tract of woodland of 1S acres in Richland County; 53 species of this number breed on the adjoining farm. On the campus of the Illinois State Normal University, 56 acres in extent, there have been observed 138 species, and SO species have been identified in one season in Normal, Illinois, on a city lot 66 feet by 198 feet in size. More than 150 species have been identified in Lincoln Park, Chicago.