Illinois

The Whitetail Deer is the largest wild mammal in Illinois, having a head-body length of 4.5 to 6.5 feet. The male Whitetail Deer weighs 75 to 400 pounds, whereas females weigh 50 to 250 pounds. The hair color varies from crimson tinge in summer to gray-brown in winter. They have a large tail with a white underside and white belly fur. Whitetail Deer are herbivores that consume fruits, grains, mushrooms, and tree and shrub leaves.

The eastern fox squirrel has a head-body length of 10 to 15 inches. Its body fur is rust-yellow, but its belly fur is white. They have a very long, bushy tail. They feed on Osage orange fruits, acorns, tree buds, hickory nuts, walnuts, fungi, and insects.

The eastern gray squirrel's head and body length vary from eight to eleven inches, with a tail length of seven to ten inches. They inhabit mature deciduous forests and urban parks, caching acorns and nuts in forest soils.

The northern bobwhite has a length of eight to eleven inches. This tiny, plump bird weighs six to seven ounces, inhabiting open grasslands, agricultural borders, and overgrown fencerows across southern and central Illinois.

A turkey's size varies somewhat depending on the species, but an adult female wild turkey weighs eight to eleven pounds, while mature gobblers can exceed 20 to 25 pounds, displaying iridescent bronze plumage and large fan tails.

The mourning dove is about 12 inches long on average. The base of the wings has some distinct black spots, and their flight is swift and direct over agricultural sunflower, wheat, and corn stubble fields.

The swamp rabbit grows 16 to 22 inches in length and weighs about four to five pounds. Restricted to southern Illinois flooded bottomland hardwood forests, cypress-tupelo swamps, and canebrakes along the Ohio and Mississippi rivers.

The eastern cottontail rabbit reaches a length of 14 to 16 inches. It has rust-brown fur with a cotton-white tail underside, widespread in brush piles, gardens, and fencerows statewide.