144 NESTS AND EGGS OF 



299. Dendragapus franklinii ( DOUGL.) [4720;.] 



Franklin's Grouse. 



Hab. Northern Rocky Mountains, west to the Pacific coast; chiefly north to the United States. 



This bird is held by some authorities as a mere variety of D. 

 canadensis. It is confined to the territory between the Rocky Moun- 

 tains and the Pacific coast, chiefly in British America. Its habits in 

 all respects are identical with those of canadensis. The nest is made 

 on the ground, of dry leaves and grass, often at the foot of decayed 

 stumps, or by the side of fallen timber in dense mountain woods. The 

 eggs average in size 1.68 x 1.24. 



300. Bonasa umbellus (LINN.) [473.] 



Ruffed Grouse. 



Hab. Eastern United States, south to North Carolina, Georgia, Mississippi and Arkansas. 



The Ruffed Grouse, " Pheasant " or " Partridge," is a noted game 

 bird distributed in wooded districts throughout Eastern United States. 

 At the limits of its habitat it is found in several geographical races as 

 given below. 



Its habits in many respects differ from those of the Prairie Hen ; 

 the latter is found on open plains, while the Grouse is rarely met with 

 there. The food of the two species is very similar, making the differ- 

 ence in their respective abodes quite striking. The well-known 

 drumming of the male birds is made during the love season, which 

 commences in March. The sound is produced by the bird while 

 standing on a fallen log or elevated rock in the most retired portion 

 of the woods ; the wings are lowered, tail expanded, the neck con- 

 tracted, and the entire body seems inflated. The tufts of neck feath- 

 ers are elevated, the bird all the while strutting about in the most 

 pompous manner possible to imagine, striking the sides of his body 

 with rapid strokes of his wings. These become so rapid that the 

 sound thus produced resembles the rumblings of remote thunder, and 

 the sounds always seem nearer than they really are. 



Under favorable circumstances this Grouse not infrequently rears 

 two broods between the first of April and the middle of October. The 

 nest is usually situated at the border of a large woods in the midst of 

 dense undergrowth, often in a thicket, not far from the road-side, 

 and very frequently the birds venture to construct it in a small 

 woods adjoining a farm house. The position of the nest is on the 

 ground beside a log or stump, or in a brush-heap, or under the 

 branches of a fallen tree. It is constructed of decayed leaves, a few 

 feathers, roots, etc. From six to fifteen eggs are deposited, usually 

 ten or twelve ; they are of a cream color of various shades, sometimes 



