1. 



Tilt: in I FED (,ll<)LSI: l\ HIE MARCH OE TIME 



ihf same witli tlic "pats'" i>f Midiijian and tlic "mountain cock" or "plicasanl of the Soutli. 



The diversity of these pieturesqiif cliara<teri/ati(>Ms is so great and their contrast, in many 

 cases, so striking, that it may be of interest to look into ihe maimer in whii h liiey probably 

 originated. Indians |)icturesquelv referred to it as "larpenter bird" because it "pounded on a 

 log""'". Linnaeus, in first describing it, assigned it to the genus Telrao with the Kuropean 

 grouse and specifically termed it umhellus because of the umbrella-like ruff which, when 

 erect, framed the head. This also accounted for the most commoidy used name, "rutTed 

 grouse". Later, however, the generic name Boiiasa ( Lat. bonasus = bison ) was used, likening 

 the drumming of the grouse to the bellowing of a bull. Thus, scientificall) . the ruffed grouse 

 became Bonasa uinbeUus. The word "grouse" seems to have been derived frcjm the French 

 terms greorlie, ^reiclie and priais, meaning spotted bird, and in the form "grous" was used 

 in England before being applied to New World species. 



Among the Indians and Eskimos, its names were as many as the dialects of the varying 

 tribes which frequented the range of the bird. No record remaitis of most of these. Then came 

 the white man: Spaniard. Frenchman. Englishman. Scandinavian. German and the rest. As 

 .settlement proceeded, these various races tended to colonize in different sections. It was quite 

 natural for them to appl) to the new birds the\ encountered, the same names used in their 

 homeland for species of similar appearance. Memories of the blackcock, the Scotch grcjuse and 

 of the ancestors of our adopted ringneck pheasant, gave rise among the English to such terms 

 as "moor-fowl", "ruffled heathcock"'. and "mountain pheasant." Similarly in French Canada, 

 the ruffed grouse became "La Grosse. Gelinote de Canada"' and "Coq de Bruyere a Fraise", 

 while the Pennsylvania Dutch likened it to the German "fesond." 



In addition to names derived from the racial background of the early settlers, many others 

 have had their origin in distinctive characteristics or habits of the bird. Those mentioned above 

 do not need further explanation but a few more will round out the discussion. The nature of 

 the meat suggested the designation "white-flesher"". while its unique drumming earned the 

 name "drunnner" in many localities. Thoughout the Northeast, where birches were a favorite 

 food, it is commonly known as the "birch partridge". At the other end of its range, how- 

 ever, Ozark mountaineers call it "woods pheasant" as di.stinguishcd from the liobwliile quail 

 which is still known as "partridge" in the South. 



Remembering that the ruffed grouse has adajjted itself to half a continent, it is not surpris- 

 ing that so man\ dissimilar and localized Tiames appear in the literature. Dniilitlcss there are 

 niaiiN more lh;ui listed here wliicli arc localK conunon but i>f which no record has been found. 



