ALTERING EXISTING COVER 647 



covers and fall feeding grounds, bereft of such evergreen shelter, unless unusually dense, 

 seldom attract many birds in New York while snow covers the ground. 



Where conifers occur naturally in clumps or blocks scattered through the woodland, little 

 need be done except to maintain them and encourage their reproduction. The occasional 

 opening up of the forest canopy will allow young evergreens more light. Where conifers 

 are not present, a fairly acceptable substitute may result from establishing a scattered series of 

 clear-cut units, each occupying from one to two acres. The tangles of sprout hardwoods, 

 vines and berries which grow up following cutting may be depended upon to provide some 

 shelter until the crown cover closes. 



The interplanting of conifers to provide winter shelter is discussed in the section on Conifer 

 Plantings. 



Summer Feeding Grounds 



No other summer feed approaches the omnipresent raspberries and blackberries in popu- 

 larity. This may help to explain why so many grouse, old and young, spend much of July, 

 August and September in the cut-over lands and along the feeding grounds that stretch out 

 from the woods' edges. Windfalls and selective lumbering, also, often let in sufficient light 

 to encourage small islands of these berries amid the com|)arative bareness of the surrounding 

 floor. Thus is produced a typical summer feeding ground jjattern rich in herbs, shrubs, leaves 

 and berries that produce food and shelter in endless profusion. 



The genesis and development of the overgrown field or woods' edge type has just been 

 discussed. Of the three major types producing summer cover, this, while always popular, 

 is, however, least sought out. 



More attractive are the recentlv spot-lumbered woodlands, the result of cutting individual 

 trees, or clumps, here and there. \\^ind. disease or insects, by attacking now and then a spot 

 or a species, tlirougliout the forest oflcii pio(hicf much the same result. 



At the top of the list, however, at tliis season stand the small cut-over areas or slashings. 

 This is natural for if one studies such situations he will find there the greatest variety of 

 food-bearing species and the most birds. 



The name "cut-over" indicates the way in which such summer feeding grounds usually 

 originate. The farmer, intent upon securing wood for farm use. and the lumberman, by 

 removing small blocks of salable conifers and hardwoods, may each be doing the grouse hunter 

 a real service. Again, the same result may originate through natural agencies, such as fire, 

 insects or disease. Unless controlled, however, the area affected is usually far larger than 

 necessary and is seldom properly situated. 



It is probable that in extensive woodlands a few sunnner feeding ground units will need to 

 be opened up. Suggestions concerning their location, size, number and rotation have been 

 discussed in the previous chapter. Here we are concerned with the actual process of estab- 

 lishment. 



There are at least three ways of accomplishing this. One may establish what is colloquially 

 known as a jungle slashing bv cutting the trees and letting them lie where they fall or by 

 lopping off only the larger limbs from the trunk. Or the undesirable trees may be girdled 

 or poisoned and left standing. Either practice is apt to create a fire hazard over a small 

 area and should be used onlv where the cost, as indicated in table 96. must be kept as low as 

 possible and the potential logs or cordwood are not worth removing. Though the appearance 



