600 THE SAGE GROUSE. 
ends blackish; fluffy feathers snowy-white, like wool, the longer overlying fila 
mentous plumes glossy black” (Coues). Adult female: Similar to male, but 
much smaller and without black of chin and throat; feathers of neck not strik 
ingly peculiar Length of cock: 24.00-30.00 (609.6-762); wing 12.00 (304.8); 
tail £1.00-13.00 ( 279.4-330.2) ; weight 4-8 pounds. Adult hen: length 21,00-23.00 
(533.4-584.2) ; wing 10.00-11.00 (254-279.4) ; tail 7.00-9.00 (177.8-228.0) ; weight 
3-5 pounds. 
Recognition Marks.—lrant size; largest of American Grouse; sage 
haunting habits 
Nesting.— Vest; a scantily lined depression in ground under sage-bush 
Liggs: 6-15, usually 8 or 9, pale buffy-olive to olive-green, dotted and spotted with 
dark brown lhe marking is of different degrees of intensity, is well distributed, 
and varies in size from a pin-head to a pea, tending to circular forms. Av. size, 
2.20 X 1.54 (55.9 X 39.1). Season: April-May 10; one brood. 
General Range.—Sage-brush plains of the western United States and south 
ern portions of British Columbia, Alberta, and Assiniboia, south to New Mexico 
and Arizona 
Range in Washington.—lractically coextensive with that of sage-brush 
especially Artemisia tridentata) in eastern Washington. 
Authorities.—| Lewis and Clark, Hist. Ex. (1814) Ed. Biddle: Coues, Vol. 
IT., p. 180.) Centrocercus urophasianus Swains, Baird, Rep. Pac. R. R. Surv 
IX.; T888ip.625. “LICes. De. Ss" Sse 
Specimens.—|!’. C. FE 
\S bamboo to the Oriental, or as the cocoanut palm to the South Sea 
Islander, so is the sage bush to this Cock of the Plains. It not only provides 
him shelter of a sort, but food and probably drink as well \t least, from 
he fact that the Sage Cock is found at such distances from water, we are 
forced to conclude that the 
dew-covered browse of the 
(Artemisia must often serve 
the bird in leu of water. As 
} 
to food, this Grouse has so 
long depended upon the 
shoots ol 
leaves and te 
the sage brush and grease 
wood for subsistence, that 
is incapable of digesting 
grain when it is offered 
The bird’s gizzard, unlike 
that of other grouse, 1s not a 
strong, muscular grinding 
organ, but a membranous 
sac capable of great disten 
OUSE HID sion, but unequal to the task 
