GROUSE 115 



habits of birds and animals will learn more of interest in 

 a few days at that season than at any other. This 

 necessarily entails early rising, to which all are not 

 partial. He will, however, soon become warmed with his 

 walk to the moor, and when comfortably ensconced in the 

 middle of a whin or juniper bush the cold will not be felt 

 so much, and he will soon become engrossed with the 

 beauties of nature that are each moment awakening 

 around him. 



Grouse at this season are by far the most restless of all 

 the game birds, not even excepting Partridges. A cock 

 bird may be seen chasing a hen for hours together, the 

 latter taking only very short rests every few minutes, and 

 even whilst on the ground she is seldom still, but struts 

 about pretending to pick up imaginary scraps of food, all 

 the time emitting her peculiar cheeping note, which is 

 only to be heard at this season. The cock, meanwhile, at 

 intervals chases her, or flies up into the air to a height of 

 fifteen to twenty feet, crowing vociferously, and, on again 

 alighting, resumes his pursuit of the hen. This perform- 

 ance is repeated several times, till the hen has obtained 

 what she considers to be sufficient rest ; thereupon she 

 flies off again, rapidly twisting, and turning quickly from 

 side to side like a Snipe, in her endeavours to escape from 

 her hotly-pursuing swain. It is extraordinary to see the 

 marvellous rapidity with which the latter can change the 

 motion of his body and wings in exact time and accordance 

 with that of the hen, so that the movements of the two 

 seem to be actuated by the same impulse. 



During this period of love and war Grouse become 

 exceedingly tame, and I have seen them alight, without 



