164 Where to Hunt 



hunted they often run to a bunch of sage, stick their 

 heads under the same, and seemingly think they are 

 obscure from view. 



The ruffed grouse or pheasant also make this state 

 their home. They are most abundant in dense, close 

 thickets, where they are generally safe from the pursuit 

 of man or dog. Here you are also sure to find some 

 excellent mountain stream or spring. The ruffed 

 grouse are not as plentiful, however, as the sage-hen. 



The pin-tail grouse, commonly but incorrectly called 

 prairie-chicken, are very plentiful, and are found mostly 

 in the settled parts of the country, where they will hatch 

 out their eggs in some hay-field, or, more frequently, 

 along the railroad track within six to ten feet from the 

 rail. These birds will also be found in the early morn- 

 ing close to the railroad track, either looking for grain 

 that may have been spilled out of cars, or for gravel for 

 the digestion of their food. In the summer-time, and 

 during the extreme heat of the day, they lie very close 

 in some thicket. They prefer a willow thicket on the 

 banks of some small stream. In the winter they con- 

 gregate together, and are often found in flocks of 500 

 to 1,000. They, like the other grouse, are very fond 

 of the choke-cherry, and it is a common occurrence 

 to see the bushes covered with these birds. 



Canada geese rest on the rivers at night, but at early 

 dawn they go up to the grain-fields for their food, 

 returning again in a few hours, when they usually alight 

 on some sand-bar or island in a river and sun them- 

 selves, and play and romp in the shallow water until 

 about four in the afternoon, when another trip is made 

 to the fields, returning again to the river at dark to, 



