TETUAOXID.K — THH GltOLSR .jr,() 



iiiif into tlir loos(i snow, workiii.i,' tlicii' wiiy iRMicitlli its surl'iico with loii- 

 siiliM'iihlc cult'iity. Ill tliick, windy, or snowy wt'utlior tliey wcro vory siiy, 

 ])orcliin,L,' on tiio tiillcr willows, wlicin it roijnircd a sluu'i) ^'y^' ^^ tlistinj,niish 

 tliiMU IVoni lliikos of snow. In the suniincr siMson they f'ucd chiefly on thu 

 lierriL's oi' thi; alpine iiibntns and other shriihs ami i)lant.s, wliicdi are laid 

 bare by thu thaw, and which do not disaiijiear nntil they are rei»hieud by a 

 new croj). They incnl)ate about the bej^inninu' of .Iniie, at wliich time the 

 females inonlt. Th- males assnme their red-colored jplnmaue as soon as the 

 rocks and eminences become bare, at which time they are in the habit of 

 standing; iipon huye stones, calling in a loud and croaking voice to their 

 mates, which, still in their white wintry yarb, are hidden in the snows l)e- 

 low. These birds are move ustially in motion in the milder light of night 

 than in the broad glare of day. 



Captain l.lakistun traced this (Jrouse across the interior from Hudson's I»ay 

 to near the Itoeky Mountains, and obtained a single specimen near Kurt 

 Carlton. It does not come down every winter, however, so far south on the 

 U]il)er Saskatchewan. Xear Lake Winnipeg, at Fort Cumlierland, and to th'j 

 eastward, they are common every winter, and nundiers are ol)tainod from 

 the shores of Hudson's Uay. Mr. l!oss gives this species as common on the 

 ^Fackenzie. Mr. Jiobert MacFarlane found it arcjund Fort Anderson, where, 

 he writes, it was always very numerous in that (quarter at all seasons, 

 and generally not diHicult of ai)proach. During the breeding-sea.son the 

 males were to lie found jierched upon trees and .stumps in the vicinity of 

 the nest, while the female would rarely leave the latter until almost trodden 

 on. They are also said, by Mr. MacFarlane, to assume their summer plu- 

 mage eai'lier than the males, differing in this statement from Dr. Ilichard- 

 son's. Their nest is always on the ground, and consists only of a few de- 

 cayed leaves jilaced in a depression. Sometimes other materials, such as 

 hay, moss, feathers, etc., are found. While incubating, the female occa- 

 sionally sits so close as to allow herself to be caught, rather than leave the 

 nest. 



They begin to nest early in June, varying a little with the season, not 

 conuuencing so soon where the ground at that period was still covered with 

 snow. F]ggs taken from the oviduct were almost invariably pure white in 

 color. In one instance an egg taken from the oviduct of a female, June H, 

 that had previously deposited eight eggs the same season, was covered with 

 coloring matter or marking so soft as to adhere to the fingers when touched. 

 After the female has once begun to lay, Mr. MacFarlane observed that she 

 dejiosits one egg each day until the whole number has been reached. This 

 varies from eight to ten. 



The males were always observed in the immediate vicinity of the ne.st, 

 and began to as.sume their summer moult about the 6th of June, most of 

 their necks at that time being already of a reddish-brown color. The mista 

 were always on the giound, and were mere depressions lined with a few soft 



