68 GUN, EOD, AND SADDLE. 



near its termination, and is generally carried open 

 like a fan. On the top of the head there is a slight 

 crest, and down each side of the neck are curious 

 fan-shaped tufts of glossy, black, yelvet-looking 

 feathers. In April these birds pair, but I should 

 imagine from the seasons- in the northern portion 

 of the United States and Canada being more back- 

 ward than ours, if they were introduced here they 

 would do so a month earlier. They lay from ten to 

 sixteen eggs, their nest, which is a very primitive 

 one, being generally secreted in brush or under the 

 shelter of a fallen log. They are most affectionate 

 parents, and use the same artifices as the Avild duck 

 to draw away the intruders from the vicinity of their 

 youthful progeny. This grouse has two distinct 

 calls, one a soft, mellow, prolonged note, gene^^lly 

 used in gathering after the covey has been broken 

 up ; the other an extraordinary drumming sound 

 made by the cocks in pairing season, and capable of 

 being heard in still weather a great distance. The 

 latter noise is caused by the rapid vibration of the 

 wings when the male is perched on a fallen tree 

 or stump. Indiscriminately they live on a great 

 variety of food — ants, grubs, alder-berries, wild 

 cherries, and grain being their favorite 4iet. Early 



