A Bit of Grouse Hunter's Lore. 187 



land, for instance, being almost invariably 

 ashy gray in general effect, the color of 

 the tail being most pronounced. In Penn- 

 sylvania the "pheasants" give an impres- 

 sion of reddish brown coloring, and the 

 tails of these birds are beautifully rich in 

 their reddish elements. In New York 

 State we find red birds and gray birds in 

 about equal numbers, and in one brood 

 we find individuals representing both ex- 

 tremes in such color variation, just as is 

 the case among the screech owls. Ruffed 

 grouse from Oregon and from Texas are 

 smaller and much lighter than their East- 

 ern relatives. Late in the autumn the 

 grouse develop a row of narrow movable 

 projecting scales along the sides of the 

 toes for aids in walking upon slippery 

 snow and ice, and these scutellae, as they 

 are called, drop off when the snow melts 

 in the spring. The average weight of 

 full-grown Eastern grouse is about twenty- 

 three ounces, but this weight varies two 

 or three ounces in accordance with the 

 character and abundance of the food sup- 

 ply. The food in the autumn includes 



