172 THE ANGLER AND HUNTSMAN 



to hunt them without having along one or more good, thor- 

 oughly trained dogs, either Setter or Pointer. While there 

 is a deal of sport in their pursuit and capture, they are not 

 as difficult to wing as the ruffled grouse. 



Sage Hen, (Centrocerus urophasianus) : 



This is the largest member of the American * grouse, 

 weighing as high as eight pounds, and is found in the west- 

 ern portion of North America. They inhabit the Great Ba- 

 sin and arid planes of the region wherein found. Their name 

 itself suggests the nature of their cover the sage brush. 

 They not only use this sage as cover, but feed upon its leaves, 

 which lends to their flesh a disagreeable taste. Owing to 

 the fact that they are easy marks, on account of their large 

 size, for the gunner, they are becoming scarcer and scarcer, 

 and are retreating to places not yet habited by man, whom 

 they try to shun. 



Wild Turkey (Meleagris gallopavo silvestris) : 



The wild turkey is not only the largest American game 

 bird, but it is a bird that claims attention from a great army 

 of sportsmen. In by-gone days wild turkey hunting was 

 one of the chief pursuits afield engaged in by a large num- 

 ber of hunters, but now, owing to its size, which made it a 

 comparatively easy mark for the gunner, its numbers have 

 been greatly decimated. 



The method usually employed in their capture consists 

 in trailing or calling them. They have keen optics, and are 

 fleet both on land and in the air. 



If not molested by man for a few .years, and if their 

 natural cover was not usurped by agriculture entirely, they 

 would probably again become a common and profitable 

 game bird. 



The turkey has many champions who assert that it 

 should replace the eagle as our national bird. Truly it has 

 all the virtues and none of the vices that the terrible eagle 



