COMMON TO BOTH SEXES 255 



der considerably prior to their first breeding season, adults which have established themselves, 

 seldom move far. Once settled, both their daily and seasonal ranges are usually small*, al- 

 though in some of the more mountainous districts, particularly in the West, there has been 

 reported'*'' "* a movement of grouse from the higher elevations to lowland areas in the fall and 

 vice versa in the spring. Most references to migration in this species, however, either pertain 

 to the so-called "crazy flight" or, more often, are erroneous interpretations of the occurrence 

 of periodic scarcity. 



On the other hand, certain records of some of the older naturalists are worth citing. Audu- 

 bon'' attributes to them habits akin to migration: "The Ruffed Grouse performs partial sorties 

 at the approach of autumn", when they may be observed crossing such rivers as the Ohio and 

 Susquehanna, "in parties of eight or ten, now and then of twelve or fifteen". He refers 

 particularly to such movements from Ohio, Illinois and Indiana into Kentucky. He further 

 states that, with the approach of sjiring, "the males, as if leading the way, proceed singly to- 

 wards the country from which they had retreated. The females follow in small parties of 

 three or four". While he speaks as though this were not an uncommon occurrence, subsequent 

 observers have not noted it. Whatever the actual facts may have been, therefore, this trait is 

 not now important. 



Other observers have, now and then, reported the occurrence of flocks or packs of grouse 

 in the fall which seemed to be traveling as a group from one locality to another. For instance, 

 Brewster^" relates finding a flock of one hundred and fifty to two hundred, in September, 1870. 

 at the Forks of the Kennebec in northern Maine. On another occasion, he followed a flock of 

 about 15 grouse over a mile through open farming country near Lake Umbagog, (Me.) be- 

 fore he lost track of it still going in the same direction. More recently, Spiller"" writes of 

 three similar observations, one of which involved a pack of 40-50 individuals which he wit- 

 nessed personally. 



Having encountered nothing of this nature during the present study, it is difficult to inter- 

 pret these experiences. All have occurred in the fall. Audubon suggested a quest for food as 

 a motivating factor; Brewster a vestigal tendency to migrate. Spiller reported an otherwise 

 general scarcity of birds at the time of his experience. Without more definite and better 

 correlated data, however, one might speculate endlessly on these and other equally intrigu- 

 ing possibilities. In any case, such group movements are rare. 



That local conditions may sometimes be responsible for apparentlv migratory movements 

 of grouse is illustrated by the following account from Smyth"'" with respect to the vicinity 

 of Ithaca, N. Y., in the fall of 1924: 



"Early in the fall, mast was very abundant and the grouse were widely scattered 

 through the woods, appearing to be relatively scarce. Toward the close of the hunting 

 season, however, hunters reported the birds as having become abundant, this being due 

 to the gathering of the grouse to more favored feeding places as the picking from the 

 woods in general became poor." 



Fall Dispersal (Crazy Flight) 



The so-called "crazy flight" among grouse has long been the subject of much discussion. 

 In the fall of the year, birds are often picked up which have flown blindly against buildings or 

 through windows, frequently killing themselves. Others are found in unusual places far from 

 their customary haunts, as in the business districts of large cities or about houses and barn- 

 yards. Their mad recklessness at such times may be judged from the fact that thev have been 



* See discussion under Territory, p. 258. 



