The Dusky Grouse 151 



" thoroughly broke " on ruffed grouse and quail 

 in the heavy cover of the East, proved none too 

 easy. 



The love-making of the male is marked by all 

 the pomp and vanity of the strutting gobbler; 

 indeed, in his actions he might pass for a turkey 

 bantam, but he has one marked peculiarity. It 

 is his habit to perch in some thick-growing tree, 

 and by filling the sacs upon his neck with air and 

 abruptly expelling it, to produce a low booming, 

 which has an extraordinaiy carrying and ventrilo- 

 quial power. This booming, or " booing," as some 

 westerners term it, seldom fails to sorely puzzle 

 a tenderfoot, the bafHing feature of it being that 

 it does not appear to gain volume or distinctness 

 when the bird is closely approached. Even a vet- 

 eran blue grouse hunter will hesitate over saying 

 how far a booming grouse is distant. 



The male, while a valiant cavalier during the 

 period of love-making, — May, or early in June, 

 according to the elevation of the range, — does not 

 trouble himself about the welfare of the young, 

 which are carefully tended by the mother. The 

 nest is a hollow scratched in the ground and 

 partially lined with grass or other soft material. 

 The number of eggs varies, seven or eight being 

 the average. Occasionally, about twice the usual 

 number are found, which would suggest the pos- 

 sibility of their having been deposited by two 



