20 THE Hi F FED GROUSE l.\ THE MARCH OF TIME 



liberated by William Barnhard, a deputy game warden in Wisconsin, on Washington Island 

 at the entrance to Green Bay in 1907-08. About 1911, 39 wild grouse were liberated on the 

 Island of Anticosti in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, where previously they had been unknown. Al- 

 though but 19 are said to have survived the first winter, they apparently bred and spread, 

 for these birds are now fairly common over the Island*. While the demand always greatly 

 exceeded the supply, no doubt many more birds were shipped, particularly during the 1920s. 

 A record of those attempts, known to the Investigation, is given in table 2. Apparently, few 

 permanent records were kept, for, if we may judge by present day experiences, scarcely a 

 year goes by but that two or three such importations come to light. For instance, Robert 

 Gerry liberated 50 grouse on his estate near Delhi, N. Y., in 1933. and 75 the following 

 year, the birds coming from Alberta. Most recent records of importation are of 261 from 

 Alberta, in 1940-42, by the Ohio Division of Conservation, for liberation in the southeastern 

 part of that State. 



Not all the interest in grouse liberations is in the East. In August 1939 Arthur S. Einarsen, 

 in charge of the Oregon Three- Way Cooperative Unit, liberated 17 hand-raised grouse on Pro- 

 tection Island. Subsequent survival was carefully checked; one brood of five was seen the 

 following fall. In 1942, however, there was apparently but a single survivor of the liberation 

 resident on the Island. 



Another practice, the establishment of refuges, also became popular. These were organ- 

 ized largely for bird protection in general rather than for grouse alone. Where fear was 

 particularly strong that grouse might vanish entirely, such areas were selected primarily to 

 preserve this species. 



The refuges served as breeding and nesting places so that grouse might be undisturbed by 

 man. Occasionally the habitat was improved by planting open areas to food or cover-pro- 

 ducing species. In some instances, also, the axe did its part in creating breaks in the forest 

 cover. Thus opened up, the all-too-barren forest floor, in the Northeast, at least, usually gave 

 way to a profusion of herbs, berries and second-growth sprouts. This proved to be a particu- 

 larly attractive combination to birds, both old and young alike. 



Considered as protective oases in the vast expanse of huntable grouse cover, these refuges 

 could have had only the most local of possible effects on the aliundance of the species as a 

 whole. History records no startling examples of innnediate and satisfy ing increases following 

 their establishment. Perhaps it is because man is, after all, but one of the major factors con- 

 trolling the abundance of this great game bird. 



RISE IN IMPORTANCE AS A SPORTING BIRD 



No game bird in America has been more completely investigated than has the ruffed grouse. 

 It was widely dispersed over the countrv. Its periods of abundance, followed by sudden 

 disappearances, were disconcertingly mysterious. Its ability to maintain itself in close 

 proximity to man and to nuikc him aware of its presence by its slightly unreal luil intrigu- 

 ing drunnning. created for most countrv folk, living within its range, many pleasant ami mem- 

 orable experiences. That it was sought after as food and was easily salable in the markets 

 also contributed to llic iiitcrcsl which made these investigations possible. 



But it was the sportsmen to whom the skill and daring of the bird most appealed. Pur- 

 sued by the occasional market hunter, it remained surprisingly tame. Once partridge hunting 

 became popular however, the bird became wary and alert. It seldom proved possible to 



• Towntrnd, C R.. prr«onal Ii-tlfr In tin- aiillmrii. January 17. 1933. 



