DUSKY GROUSE 95 



something closely akin to a gigantic stockade with extremely narrow inter- 

 spaces. 



In spite of the bird's penchant for timber it frequently is found in the 

 open and in grain fields. In such places the sportsman may enjoy " blue 

 grouse " shooting as it should be, and sport of a very high order. Then the 

 full strength and speed of the game becomes apparent, and the man who 

 makes uniformly good scores has no reason to fear any ordinary company. 



Fall.— Prof. Wells W. Cooke (1897) says: 



In August they begin to gather into flocks of 10 to 15 individuals and 

 visit the grain fields or the more open gulches and foothills for berries. In 

 September they wander above timber-line to feed on grasshoppers, reaching 

 32,500 feet. In winter they come down into the thick woods during the severest 

 weather, but many remain the whole year close to timber-line. 



DISTRIBUTION 



Range. — The Rocky Mountain region of the United States and 

 Canada. 



The range of the dusky grouse extends north to east-central 

 Yukon (probably the south fork of the Macmillan River) ; and 

 southern Mackenzie (Mount Tha-on-tha). East to southern 

 Mackenzie (Mount Tha-on-tha) ; Alberta (Stony Plain and 60 miles 

 west of Calgary) ; Montana (Zortman, Judith Mountains, Big 

 Snowy Mountains, and Fort Custer) ; Wyoming (Sheridan, Trap- 

 pers Creek, Guernsey, Wheatland, Pole Mountain, and Sherman) ; 

 Colorado (Estes Park, Boulder, Golden, Jefferson, Wet Mountains, 

 Sangre de Cristo Mountains, and Fort Garland) ; and New Mexico 

 (Culebra Mountains, Halls Peak, Pecos Baldy, San Mateo Moun- 

 tains, Eagle Peak, and Mogollon Mountains). South to south- 

 western New Mexico (Mogollon Mountains and San Francisco 

 Mountains) ; Arizona (Blue Mountains, Mount Thomas, Mount Ord, 

 and the Kaibab Plateau) ; and central Nevada (Arc Dome). West 

 to central Nevada (Arc Dome, Toiyabe Mountains, Monitor Moun- 

 tains, Ruby Valley, Clover Mountains, and East Humboldt Moun- 

 tains) ; eastern Oregon (Fort Harney, Strawberry Mountain, and 

 Turtle Cove) ; eastern Washington (Butte Creek, Hompeg Falls, 

 Okanogan, and Haig Creek) ; eastern British Columbia (Princeton, 

 Nicola, Ashcroft, Bonaparte, Babine Mountains, Nine-mile Moun- 

 tain, Fort Connolly, Groundhog Mountain, Tset-ee-yeh River, Sec- 

 ond South Fork, Doch-da-on Creek, and Telegraph Creek) ; and 

 Yukon (Teslin Lake and probably the south fork of the Macmillan 

 River). 



Three subspecies of Dendragapus obscurus are recognized. True 

 obscurus is found from central Arizona and southwestern New Mex- 

 ico north to northern Colorado, northern Utah, and southeastern 

 Idaho, extending west to central Nevada. D. o. richardsoni occu- 



