78 NATURAL HISTORY OF THE GROUSE 



off the hill-tops, looking for more sheltered and genial 

 situations. Naturally, many of them seek the edges 

 of the moors, and are caught in the nets set upon 

 such allotments as abut upon them. This method of 

 netting grouse is very disastrous. The mischief of 

 capturing the birds is only part of the evil. The 

 worst feature about it is that the hens are caught in 

 such numbers as seriously to interfere with the breed- 

 ing stock. It is true that birds of both sexes will fly 

 a long distance to a patch of black heather during a 

 prevalence of severe frost and heavy snow, but earlier 

 in the season the number of hens caught generally 

 outnumbers the cocks very seriously. The reason 

 for this seems to be twofold. The hens shift about 

 in packs more irregularly than their male companions, 

 and they are less partial to the high grounds, but seek 

 the lower portions of the moor, and such as are most 

 screened from the east winds. Fine open weather, 

 however, suits the grouse-netters best, and they say 

 that the birds fly very long distances when shifting 

 about the hills. The old cocks keep their own 'heaf,' 

 or station, on the hill' with more constancy than their 

 female companions. In the morning the birds 'start 

 to feed ' soon after they cease ' becking,' but they do 

 not feed so heavily in the forenoon as later in the 

 day, an hour or two before dusk especially, when 



