CAPERCAILLIE. 291 



of this noble bird that I am acquainted with is furnished by 

 L. Lloyd, Esq. in his Field Sports of the North of Europe, 

 written during a residence in Sweden and Norway ; and as 

 the opportunity of studying this bird in his native forests 

 occurs to but few, I hope I shall be excused for selecting 

 from this very interesting work a portion of the following- 

 pages. 



" The Capercali is to be found in most parts of the Scan- 

 dinavian peninsula ; indeed as far to the north as the pine 

 tree flourishes, which is very near to the North Cape itself. 

 These birds are, however, very scarce in the more southern 

 of the Swedish provinces. The favourite haunts of the Ca- 

 percali arc extensive fir woods. In coppices, or small cover, 

 he is seldom or never to be found. Professor Nilsson ob- 

 serves that those which breed in the larger forests remain 

 there all the year round ; but those which, on the contrary, 

 breed on the sides of elevated mountains, or in a more open 

 part of the country, in the event of deep snow, usually fall 

 down to the lower grounds." 



" The principal food of the Capercali, when in a state 

 of nature, consists of the leaves and tender shoots of the 

 Scotch fir, Pinus sylvestris. He very rarely feeds upon 

 those of the spruce, Pinus abies. He also eats juniper 

 berries, cranberries, blueberries, and other berries common 

 to the northern forests ; and occasionally also, in the winter 

 time, the buds of the birch, &c. The young Capercali feed 

 principally at first on ants, worms, insects, Sec." 



" In the spring of the year, and often when the ground is 

 still deeply covered with snow, the cock stations himself on a 

 pine, and commences his love-song, or play, as it is termed in 

 Sweden, to attract the hens about him. This is usually from 

 the first dawn of day to sunrise, or from a little after sunset 

 until it is quite dark. The time, however, more or less, 

 depends upon the mildness of the weather, and the advanced 



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