20 University of California Publications in Zoology [Vol.10 



not found. It probably does occur there but is certainly un- 

 common, as the storekeeper at Friendly Cove had not seen one 

 during a residence of two years. At Delia Lake (altitude about 

 3000 feet), August 20, feathers and droppings were noted at 

 various points, but no grouse were seen. 



The species is locally migratory, descending into the valleys 

 during the breeding season, and retreating into the higher moun- 

 tains at the end of the summer. The old males go first, beginning 

 to leave about the time the females are bringing their young from 

 the nest. At Beaver Creek a few still lingered through June 

 and could occasionally be heard hooting. In the mountains south 

 of Alberni, in July, no old males were seen at the bottoms of 

 the basins, or in the canons, where females with young were 

 frequently met with, but on the higher slopes and the summits 

 of the surrounding ridges they were quite abundant. At the 

 top of Mount Douglas (altitude about 4200 feet) several were 

 heard hooting July 14 to 16. 



At Errington, early in September, sooty grouse were abun- 

 dant and gathered in flocks, usually of from six to ten indi- 

 viduals, though as many as fifteen were seen in one gathering. 

 At this time there were no males in the lowlands, these flocks 

 being in all probability composed usually each of a female with 

 her brood ; but a trip to the summit of Mount Arrowsmith, Sep- 

 tember 6 to 8, disclosed the presence of the cock birds in 

 numbers everywhere on the higher slopes of the mountains. 

 About the second week in September the others began to follow, 

 and they soon became quite scarce in the lowlands. By the end 

 of the month but very few remained. 



This seasonal movement is extraordinary. For a bird to 

 descend into the lowlands during the summer, and then to retreat 

 to the bleak, exposed ridges at the advent of cold weather seems 

 contrary to all expectation and is the opposite of the usual 

 migratory movement of the birds of the high mountains. Neither 

 does it seem to be analogous to the autumnal dispersal of 

 birds, in which many lowland species ascend to high altitudes. 

 Although under primitive conditions this would seem to be any- 

 thing but an advantageous move on the part of the bird, at the 

 present time it undoubtedly does save the lives of many grouse 



