34 GROUSE SHOOTING. 



lay her eggs at the close of March, depositing them 

 in hollow cavities at the base of heathery tufts, which 

 serve both for a sort of concealment, and for pro- 

 tection from the weather. She floors the nest with 

 a straw or two, or a few blades of grass. Here both 

 parents watch over their brood, and pertinaciously 

 defend it from the attacks of every assailant ; in 

 many known cases successfully protecting their eggs 

 from the bold attacks of the carrion crow. The 

 greatest foe of the young of the red grouse, as it is at 

 present found, is the tape-worm ; by which, in occa- 

 sional seasons, it is so terribly ravaged, that it be- 

 comes nearly extirpated in districts so infested. 

 After this, their most pestilent natural enemy may 

 be deemed in importance the common crow, who 

 vigorously attacks the ground-nests in order to carry 

 off the eggs. The early plumage of the young bird 

 takes its hues from the female, which is of a pale 

 ground tint, marked with white bars, only there is 

 more red in the feathers of the young. Its adult 

 plumage is a rich reddish brown (sienna brown), 

 deepening in shade on the belly to black, with pale 

 tips, and barred across with deep brown. There is 

 variety, however, discovered in the markings ; for 

 some of the early birds are considerably marked with 

 white underneath. Some deem this, we believe erro- 

 neously, a sign of age. The female is altogether of 

 fainter hues, and the palest colours are the largest. 

 The feathers of both birds change at breeding time, 

 becoming more decided in colour, with pale yellowish 



