THE RUFFED GROUSE 



Grouse Family — Tetraonidce 



Length: About 17 inches. 



Male: Upper parts reddish-brown, with black, yellowish, gray, 

 and whitish markings; large tufts or "ruffs" of glossy 

 black feathers at the sides of the neck. Tail long 

 and broad, gray and reddish-brown, mottled and 

 barred with black, and a broad blackish band near 

 the end; when spread, the tail resembles a fan. 

 Under parts buffy, becoming white, with black bars 

 that are indistinct on breast and belly, and darker 

 on the sides; a broken band on the breast. 



Female: Similar to male, but with smaller ruffs on the sides 

 of the neck. 



"Love-songf": A loud tattoo or drumming that sounds like a 

 thump on a large drum — a tum-tum-tum-tum-tum- 

 tup-tup-whir-r-r-r-r-r. This tattoo is most common in 

 late winter and early spring, but may be heard in 

 the summer and fall. While heard most frequently 

 during the day, it may be heard at any hour of the 

 night. In making it, the bird usually stands very 

 erect on a hollow log or stump, with head held high 

 and ruffs erected and spread, and, raising its wings, 

 strikes downward and forward. The sound produced 

 is a muflfled boom or thump. It begins with a few 

 slow beats, gradually growing quicker, and ends in 

 a rolling, accelerated "tattoo." ^ 



Habitat: A bird of the woods that nests on the ground. 



Bange: A resident in the northern two-thirds of the United 

 States and in the forested parts of Canada. 



iFrom "Useful Birds and Their Protection," by E. H. Forbush. 



[44] 



