Grouse of the Northern Cattle Plains 101 



resembled. Some young sage fowl, shot shortly 

 afterward, proved tender and juicy, and tasted 

 quite as well as sharp-tails. All of these birds had 

 their crops crammed with grasshoppers, and doubt- 

 less the nature of their food had much to do with 

 their proving so good for the table. An old bird, 

 which had fed on nothing but sage, and was not 

 drawn when shot, would, beyond question, be very 

 poor eating. Like the spruce grouse and the two 

 kinds of prairie fowl, but unlike the ruffed grouse 

 and blue grouse, the sage fowl has dark meat. 



In walking and running on the ground, sage 

 fowl act much like common hens, and can skulk 

 through the sage brush so fast that it is often 

 diffcult to make them take wing. When surprised 

 they will sometimes squat flat down with their 

 heads on the ground, when it is very difficult to 

 make them out, as their upper parts harmonize 

 curiously in color with the surroundings. I have 

 never known of their being shot over a dog, and, 

 indeed, the country where they are found is so dry 

 and difficult that no dog would be able to do any 

 work in it. 



When flushed, they rise with a loud whirring, 

 laboring heavily, often clucking hoarsely; when 

 they get fairly under way they move along in a 

 strong, steady flight, sailing most of the time, but 

 giving, every now and then, a succession of power- 

 ful wing-beats, and their course is usually sustained 

 for a mile or over before they light. They are 

 very easy marks, but require hard hitting to bring 



