shelter 85 



are used some for normal conditions (mainly hardwoods), and the 

 mixed woods and coniferous types used particularly for escape from 

 extremes of heat or storm conditions. 



With the advent of autumn the choice of cover types begins the 

 trend back toward winter conditions with a greatly increased use 

 of coniferous and mixed woods. The slashing, with its abundance of 

 brambles for summer food, wanes in importance but overgrown 

 land reaches its highest degree of use due to the abundance of 

 fall-fruiting shrubs in these types. Once more, as in spring, there is 

 a significant increase in the use of open land although this never 

 rises to a position of great importance. The use intensities of the 

 cover types in the fall are: 



Overgrown land 1.00 Use intensity ratio 



Hardwoods .88 when reduced to 



Mixed woods .80 parts of the major 



Coniferous woods .76 type taken as 1.0 



Slashings .52 



Open land .04 



The great importance of coniferous cover at this season is prob- 

 ably a reflection that the last of the fall season as used here, all 

 or most of December at least, is really winter so far as the grouse 

 is concerned. The choice of cover in the early fall tends more to the 

 hardwood groups, particularly overgrown land where such de- 

 sirable fall foods as hawthorn are to be found. 



It appears that the intensity of use of cover-type groups in the 

 fall is significant from each other except between conifers and mixed 

 woods. However, here as in all of the cover-type records, the use of 

 hardwood woodlands probably ranks somewhat lower than is 

 actually warranted. The fact that the hardwood stands were by a 

 wide margin the most extensive stands on the Connecticut Hill area, 

 coupled with the second fact that these several stands included the 

 largest continuous blocks, results in a lower use intensity than the 

 character of the type itself would warrant. As with all cover types, 

 the edges are used most, hence the types having the greatest pro- 

 portions of area far from edges will be used less, other things bemg 

 equal. If the prevalence of the hardwood-woodland types in an area 

 were small in comparison, let us say, to the coniferous or overgrown- 

 land types, then the intensity of use of the hardwoods in relation 

 to the others would rise markedly. 



We have analvzed the shelter type selections of the adult grouse 



