126 The Ruffed Grouse 



Popples are cut by beavers as one of their most important foods. 

 Locall)^ this competition may well affect tlie grouse. These trees are 

 also browsed by the white-tailed deer and snowshoe hare but with- 

 out significant competition for the grouse. 



Chemical analysis—?, grandidentata, fresh buds: water— 49.8 per 

 cent; protein— 6.4 per cent; fat— 5.1 per cent; nitrogen-free extract— 

 24.1 per cent; fiber— 13.3 per cent; ash— 1.4 per cent (Hosley, 1938). 



Cherries {Prunus spp.) 



Species utilized: Black cherry (P. serotina), pin cherry (P. penn- 

 sylvanicum) , chokecherry (P. virginiana), all these three provide 

 staple foods in approximately that order of importance and furnish 

 most of the subsistence derived from plants of the genus. However, 

 wild plums (P. americana), sweet cherry (P. avium), plum (P. do- 

 mestica var. ), and peach (P. persica var.) also contribute more or 

 less to the diet of the grouse. 



Seasonal importance: The cherries furnish an important part of 

 the food supply throughout the year. Both adults and young con- 

 sume the fruit during summer, fall, and into the winter, as long as 

 available. Buds are taken in fall, winter and spring. The cherry 

 genus probably assumes greatest importance as a food resource in 

 winter, increasing steadily from December to March, but ranks 

 high also in early spring, summer, and fall. Use is less in late spring 

 than at other times. 



Parts used: Fruit, buds (see Plate 20C) and twigs, and leaves. 



Geographical importance: The cherries are among the most im- 

 portant grouse food producers from Pennsylvania northward. From 

 Nelson's report they seem to be of little value in Virginia; however, 

 this finding from a limited area and period may not hold in general. 



Black cherry (see Plate 26A) is a large tree of the Appalachian 

 highlands, reaching its best growth in the hemlock-hardwoods type. 

 To the north and south of its optimum range it is usually found 

 considerably dwarfed. The fruit ripens in August and September 

 and is taken from tree or ground throughout the fall and into the 

 winter. 



Pin cherry ( see Plate 26B ) is a small, short-lived tree, most com- 

 monly associated with recent burns. It is often found in nearly pure 

 stands in bums or old fields, but is ultimately entirely displaced by 



