THE PIGEONS, GROUSE, AND SHORE-BIRDS. 227 



pation for a multitude of gunners. Markets east and west 

 are supplied with great numbers of these birds. 



The food of this species seems to be not materially different 

 from that of other grouse in temperate latitudes. Insects 

 form the major portion of the diet in summer. It is fond of 

 grasshoppers and lives on them almost exclusively when they 

 are sufficiently abundant. 



In autumn and winter it is usually found in the grain-fields 

 feeding on cereals as well as seeds and berries. In the north- 

 ern portion of its range the females usually migrate southward 

 to escape the rigors of winter, leaving the stronger males on 

 the home ground. 



The Columbian Sharp-tailed Grouse, which ranges over the 

 Great Plains and from northern California to Alaska, ranks 

 among the highest as a game-bird and its flesh is unexcelled 

 for the table. It feeds on berries, among which may be 

 mentioned the snow-berry, bear-berry, whortleberry, and 

 haws of the wild rose, seeds, grains, and insects. 



The Dusky Grouse and its closely allied races, the Sooty 

 Grouse and Richardson's Grouse, which together extend 

 through the Rocky Mountains and westward to the Pacific, are 

 perhaps the finest of our grouse. The dusky grouse is large, 

 weighing about three pounds, and during the greater part of 

 the year its flesh has a resinous flavor much relished by those 

 accustomed to it. Except for a little while in summer, when 

 it descends to the ground to feed on berries and seeds, it lives 

 mainly in the pines and firs, the leaves of which constitute its 

 main food. 



Of all our game-birds none are so handsome as the several 

 species of plumed partridges found west of the Rocky Moun- 

 tains. The Mountain Partridge, found along the Pacific coast 

 from San Francisco to Washington, and the California Par- 

 tridge, with two races representing it in the southwestern 

 part of the United States, have an economic value, both as to 

 food habits and table qualities, similar to the eastern bob- 



