Ruffed Grouse 241 



No other orchestra contains a member who can 

 drum without a drum. Even that famous 

 drummer, the woodpecker, needs a dead, dry, 

 resonant, hardwood limb to tap on before he 

 can produce his best effects. How does the 

 grouse beat his deep, muffled, thump, thump, 

 thimiping, rolling tattoo ? Some scientists have 

 staked their reputation on the claim that they 

 have seen him drum by rapidly striking his 

 wings against the sides of his body; but other 

 later-day scientists, who contend that he beats 

 only the air when his wings vibrate so fast that 

 the sight cannot quite follow them, are un- 

 doubtedly right. 



On a fallen log, a stump, a rail fence or a wall, 

 that may have been used as a dnmiming stand 

 for many years, the male grouse will strut with 

 a jerking, dandified gait, puff out his feathers, 

 ruff his neck frills, raise and spread his fan- 

 shaped tail like a turkey cock, blow out his 

 cheeks and neck, then suddenly halt and begin 

 to beat his wings. After a few slow, measured 

 thumps, the stiff, strong wings whir faster 

 and faster, until there is only a blur where they 

 vibrate. This is the grouse's love song that 

 summons a mate to their trysting place. It 

 serves also as a challenge to a rival. Blood and 

 feathers may soon be strewn around the ground, 

 for in the spring grouse will fight as fiercely as 

 game-cocks. Sportsmen in the autumn woods 



