1910] FOREST, GAME AND FISH WARDEN. 93 



step or two, and occasionally snap a dry twig. The next instant a cock Grouse 

 hops to the top of a log; his head is erect; his feathers lie close to his sides/ 

 and for a creature as wild as any that haunts the woods, his whole manner 

 shows only serenity, and a modest self-satisfaction. The next instant he turns 

 cross-ways of the log, the head is raised, the feathers of the neck and black 

 ruff extended by the same act, the tail is spread, and at the same time the 

 wings beat the air three or four clearly distinct times with a muffled whir at 

 each beat such is the force of the stroke and then hang straight down for 

 an instant, and also between the strokes just described. Now begins the part 

 of the drumming which is so familiar to many as a distant rumble and char- 

 acteristic wood sound. As the interval between the strokes, which at first is 

 about a second, gradually shortens, the bird assumes a more and more horizon- 

 tal position until at the end, when the drumming has become one prolonged 

 whir of the constantly moving wings, the head sets down close to the shoulders. 

 In the latter part of the drumming the outline o-f the wings is entirely lost in 

 a gray haze which, however, serves to show the extent of their motion; they- 

 are held just free from the sides and fluttered rather than flapped at the close 

 of the act. In the first part of the drumming it may easily be observed that 

 the tips of the wings are brought as far forward as the feet and backward 

 about to a horizontal position. The tail lays flat on the log, if the latter is 

 large. 



' ' ' The drumming ended (the entire act lasts about ten seconds) the Grouse 

 immediately raises his head and raises and expands his tail by one motion, 

 which seems involuntary as if from the exhilaration of his late effort, the tail 

 slowly falling again to its usual position. The bird may now stand motionless, 

 apparently listening several moments until the drumming begins again as be- 

 fore. I have heard or seen at close range at least a hundred of the perform- 

 ances. Each of these could be described as above, excepting a very few times 

 when, after a few preliminary wing beats, the bird suddenly stopped, being 

 interrupted by some unusual sound such as the bark of a dog, scream of a 

 hawk, snapping of a twig in my blind, or even a sight of me. ' 



" 'The drumming of this Grouse is especially interesting to the naturalist. 

 To the hunter it is an alluring call that leads him on into the depths of the 

 woods. And, when drawn thither into the home of the Ruffed Grouse, the real 

 sportsman will find him one of the most interesting of all our game birds. ' ' The 

 Ruffed Grouse affords grand sport; indeed, with not a few sportsmen, it holds 

 higher place even than Bob-white. In flight it is one of the swiftest of up- 

 land game birds, and considerable skill, a quick eye, and a steady hand are 

 needed to shoot it on the wing. Most shots must be made in cover, and the 

 bird's habit of putting a tree between itself and the sportsman as it flies away 

 adds to the difficulty." (Juoo.) 



"In the presence of so many true lovers of the woods and the wild game that 

 resorts there, I need not make a plea for the further protection of so splendid 

 a bird as the Ruffed Grouse. Already the fate of the Pinnated Grouse and the 

 Heath Hen warn us of the danger of the extinction of such birds as these. 

 The Pinnated Grouse has gone forever from this section, and the forty or 

 fifty Heath Hens now huddle together for very life in their last stronghold, 

 Martha's Vineyard Island. Shall the increasing scarcity of our beautiful 

 Ruffed Grouse be a real sign of its approaching doom, or shall it be for us a 



