3Q8 FOREST GROUSE. 



a good "take-off" for the attempt: but as they keep 

 slowly descending in their flight all the way across, 

 it often happens (so these acute observers of the 

 wilderness say) that they fall into the water before 

 reaching the opposite bank, and thus get drowned. 



We ought to say a few words in passing on the 

 forest varieties of the grouse. This class of birds seem 

 to be common all over Northern Canada, Sweden, 

 Norway, Russia, and Siberia. The "ruffed grouse" 

 (Tetrao Umbellus) is a good typical example of these 

 birds in America and the ryper or hazel grouse 

 (Tetrao Bonasia) in Scandinavia is another so is the 

 larger variety of it, the "Skov" or "Dal-Rype" (Lagopus 

 Sub-Alpind) known to the English sportsman in Norway 

 as the wood or willow grouse, as also the capercailzie 

 (Tetrao Urogallus] the king of the grouse tribe, which is 

 found all over the pine forest region of Northern Europe. 

 These birds may all more or less be regarded as 

 forest varieties of the grouse tribe, as distinguished 

 from the red or heather grouse of Scotland (Lagopus 

 Scoticus], the black-cock (Tetrao Tetrix], and the ptar- 

 migan or snow grouse (Lagopus Mutus] : each of these 

 latter being moorland birds, inhabiting the bare hill 

 slopes, above the range of tree growth; of these the 

 ptarmigan is distinctly a denizen of the snow region, 

 and only commences to appear at altitudes where the 

 red grouse ceases to be found and where the black-cock 

 also commences to disappear. * Therefore, in a great 



* In Gould's splendid work entitled The Birds of Asia (/ Vols. imp. 

 folio) plates are given of at least four varieties of Himalayan snow 

 grouse, inhabiting the great table-lands of Thibet and other northern 

 hill states. Among these we may mention the Tetraogallus Himalay- 

 ensis or Himalayan snow grouse, and T. Thtbetanns, or the Thibetan 

 snow grouse: both large and beautiful birds, which Mr. Gould describes 

 as "Partridges ." See Gould's "Birds of Asia," Vol. vii., plates 30 and 32. 



