AS A GROUSE HUNTER 



373 



During seasons of few grouse, a larger percentage of the hunters became pheasant minded 

 and did not hunt the partridge. Therefore, our average figure of 20 per cent of all licensees 

 reporting game taken being grouse hunters may be a little high. And. during abundance of 

 these birds, with more gunners taking to the uplands, that average may be a trifle low. 

 Even with these allowances, it is still apparent that each sportsman has had a better bag 

 during recent years. All of which means that, during the past ten years in New York, 

 grouse have been more than holding their own in spite of increasing hunting pressure. 



The Hunter Take 



Leaving trends, now let us turn to the specific records of the number of grouse bagged. 

 The first field studies to determine the effect of hunting on the grouse population were made 

 by the Investigation during the 19.30 and 19.31 hunting seasons. Check areas were chosen 

 in Tompkins County in the hillv. south-central portion of the state. For the 1930 studv. 

 eight areas were chosen, of which six proved satisfactory. In 1931. twenty-five areas were 

 checked, of which thirteen proved acceptable. Censuses were taken before and after the 

 hunting season and reports were obtained from the hunters using the areas. Table r>() sum- 

 marizes the grouse kill records for both studies. 



TABLE 56. GROUSE KILLED BY HUNTEK.S ON HUNTINCJ C.HEC.k \lii;\S 1<):!(I-I'>:U 



In 1930, the open season extended from the first of October until the fifteenth of Novem- 

 ber. The grouse population was at about 30 per cent of its peak. The 1931 open season 

 extended from October 26 until IVovember 15 and the grouse population was about 60 

 per cent of peak abundance. The per cent iiagged is based on all coverts. 



In interpreting these figures, it must be recognized that in 1930. when the season was 

 re-opened after two years of closure, a large share of the hunters did not approve of the open 

 season and refrained from hunting grouse because they believed the birds were still too 

 scarce. This reaction is reflected in the low rate of take for that year. In 1931. with a very 

 definite continued increase in the grouse population in spite of the 1930 open hunting season, 

 this feeling was less widespread and the results for this year were probably more nearly 

 normal. 



Another hunting check was made in the fall of 1936 on 1.379 acres of public hunting 

 grounds. In a season extending from October 21 through November 1.5. hunters bagged 

 13 grouse. These represented 13.9 per cent of the pre-season grouse population estimate of 

 94 birds. The highest take on any one of the coverts was 23 per cent. This study simply 

 adds weight to the earlier conclusions, since the results were very nearly the same. 



Following the first New York studies, two other similar hunter-check surveys were made in 

 the mid-west. \^1iile each involves different ecological conditions than New York, both are 

 valuable for comparison. 



Saunders* working in Michigan found the hunter take in 1932 to be 6.7 per cent of the 

 September population. This figure is no doubt lower than the actual take since the pre- 



* Rulil. H. D.. personal letter lo the author. 1936. 



