THE NATURAL COVER METHOD OF RAISING GROUSE 



455 



Penning Birds and Providing Shelter 



A concensus of opinion dictates the choice of a well drained, fairly open site for all pens. 

 The size of the wintering enclosure must of course vary with the number of birds to be held 

 therein. From the standpoint of preventing disease there is no safe minimum, for a few birds 

 liberated on an acre of ground are still likely to become infected. At the Catskill Experimental 

 Station about 40 adults were wintered in a pen 54 feet x 75 feet x 8 feet without encountering 

 serious losses. Subsequent experience, however, indicated clearly that one should expect an 

 increase in mortality caused by blackhead after holding the grouse on the ground. 



Such a wintering pen should contain considerable natural shelter. Jeffries'™ claims that the 

 proportion of shaded to sunlit ground is important and recommends that 60 to 75 per cent of 

 the area is shaded. Sunlight may, however, be a strong aid in controlling disease. For this 

 reason, at the Catskill Station the wintering and breeding area was left but one-quarter shaded. 

 In this portion the birds tended to gather, and a wire floor was constructed over that part of 

 the ground to reduce the danger of infection. 



The pen should be constructed of sturdy material and covered with 1-inrh poultry net- 

 ting strongly supported to withstand winter snowfall and to discourage predators. At the 

 Catskill Station, where 2-inch mesh was used, in one night a great horned owl beheaded 

 five grouse. Frightened by the air raid, they had persisted in attempting to fly through the 

 top of the pen until beheaded. 



To prevent the breeders from "walking the wire", boards or burlap about 12 inches high 

 may be placed on edge along the side walls next to the ground. 



In February or early March the breeders may be placed, preferably in pairs, in 

 small enclosures. The "all-purpose" pen (figure 37) is ideal for this purpose. By covering 

 the windward end of the pen, shelter against inclement weather for adults and chicks alike, can 

 be secured. In the spring, breeding females need small hideaways where they may seek pro- 

 tection from the male. In fact, if the female is to incubate her own eggs, the males should be 

 removed from the pens when the clutch is completed. 



Many suggestions detailed later in the chapter will be found applicable to the care on the 



