106 THE GROUSE IN HEALTH AND IN DISEASE 



from the supply of fresh water provided for them, and the 

 droppings of nesting birds are always found near water. Wild 

 birds, in the hot weather of July and August, and in the dry, 

 frosty days of winter, often congregate near running water 

 and open streams when other drinking-places are dried up or 

 frozen hard. It is well known that in the summer Grouse 

 often shift entirely from the drier beats of a moor to the well- 

 watered ones, and, on a certain dry, sandy moor near the sea, 

 even the young birds die if the artificial drinking-pools are 

 allowed to run dry. 1 The almost unanimous opinion expressed 

 by correspondents favours the view that under natural condi- 

 tions the adult Grouse go to drink two or three times a day. 



In support of the view that Grouse either never drink, 

 or at least are not dependent upon a supply of drinking water, 

 several arguments are brought forward. It is said that no 

 Grouse has ever been seen to drink, but when we consider how 

 wild the bird is in its natural state this is not surprising ; indeed, 

 only very few observers have succeeded in seeing the bird in 

 the act of feeding. Another argument used is that from an 

 examination of the alimentary canal no trace of water can be 

 found, and the contents of the crop are always found to be dry. 

 This may be sufficient to prove that the bird does not drink 

 when the crop is full, but does not dispose of the possibility 

 of its drinking during the long periods of the day when the 

 crop is empty. Then, again, cases are quoted of moors which 

 carry a large and flourishing stock of Grouse where the ground 

 is by no means well watered. On one of the best stocked 

 Grouse moors in Britain, the only water comes from about a 

 dozen springs and one deep burn which runs through the middle 

 of the ground. Grouse are seldom observed to resort to the 

 burn, and it is difficult to see how several thousand birds can 

 all water at the springs. While it cannot be said that this 

 entirely disposes of the question, it seems to justify the view 

 that Grouse are not dependent upon a large water supply, 



How far dew forms a substitute for water is a matter which 



1 See note on p. 317. 



