368 Red Grovse on the Continent. 



Xr. — A Note concerning Red Grouse on the Continent. 

 Ey W. SoMERviLLE, Profcssor of Rural Economy, Oxford. 



It is uo doubt within the knowledge of many that the Red 

 Grouse (^Lagopus scoticus) of the British Isles lias been 

 successfully introduced on the Continent, but it may not be 

 so well known how remarkably the bird has thriven in its 

 new quarters. In September last I had occasion to visit the 

 Ilohe Venn, tliat elevated region of moorland situated, along 

 the Germano-Bclgian frontier south of Spa^ and as I was 

 aware that it was in this district that the experiment in 

 acclimatization had been made^ I naturally kept a look- 

 out for examples of the bird^ and in a short walk over a 

 moor I flushed a strong covey. 



The experiment has been watched Avith interest by con- 

 tinental sportsmen, ami its progress has been noted in various 

 periodicals, amongst others, ' Das Waidwerk im Wort und 

 Rild,^ 1896, pp. 81 & 161, VDie Allgemeine Forst und 

 Jagd Zeitung,' 1901, p. 399, and 'Das Cenlialblatt fiir das 

 gesammte Forstwesen/ 1901, p. 323. From these we learn 

 that the first attempt was made in Kreis IMalmcdy by 

 A. Barry-Herrfeldt, of Schloss Marteau, who in October 1893 

 liberated some birds, which, however, only survived a fort- 

 night. In the following December another attempt M'as 

 made, but it also ended in failure. In August 1894 the 

 same experimenter imported fifty pairs, and by the avitumn 

 of 1893 they or their progeny had spread all over the Ilohe 

 Venn. By 1901 the number of birds in the two " Kreise "" 

 of Malmedy and Montjoin Avas estimated at 1000 head, and 

 this in spite of regular shooting for some seasons. 



The successful outcome of the experiment has had a 

 marked eftect on the s])orting value of land in the neigh- 

 bourhood, shooting rents having risen greatly in value. 



As regards close time, and penalties for killing out of 

 season or by illegal methods, Belgium and Germany have 

 practically bracketed the Grouse with the Partridge — that is 

 to say, it is protected from December 1 to August 31 — the 

 penalty for killing a bird out of season being M. 6 in 

 Germany, and presumably about the same in Belgium. 



