THE) OOLOGIST 



117 



Odd Finds. 



April 13, 1913, I found a set of three 

 Red-shouldered Hawk, two eggs being- 

 averaged size, with almost no mark- 

 ings and the third egg was just about 

 the size of a Sparrow Hawk and had 

 very little marking. First runt Hawk 

 egg I ever found in a good many years 

 collecting. 



June 14, 1913 found a set of Cedar 

 Waxwing with four eggs and one of a 

 Black-billed Cuckoo. 



Roscoe T. Giles. 

 Marlboro, Mass. 



Drumming of the Ruffed Grouse. 



As none of the few works on Orni- 

 thology in my library contain a full 

 description of the familiar drumming 

 of the Ruffed Grouse perhaps a few 

 remarks on the subject may be of in- 

 terest. The most detailed description 

 I have ever seen is given in Davies 

 Nest and Eggs of North American 

 Birds, Fifth Edition, and according to 

 my observation in one particular it is 

 completely in error. The following 

 quotation is taken from the descrip- 

 tion given in this work — "The tufts of 

 the neck feathers are elevated, the 

 bird all the while strutting about in 

 the most pompous manner possible to 

 imagine, striking the sides of her body 

 with rapid strokes of her wings. 



I have observed a number of these 

 birds in the act of drumming. The 

 procedure is always about the same 

 and never in any instance have I seen 

 a drummer move out of her tracks dur- 

 ing the act of drumming or between 

 performances, much less "strut about 

 on the most pompous manner possible 

 to imagine." 



His first position in sitting on a log 

 in a rather huddled up attitude facing 

 away from the log not along it and he 

 looks as if drowsy or asleep but if you 

 try to approach too near he is up and 

 away like a flash. 



The following two descriptions are 

 taken from my notebook, the first ob- 

 tained without use of a glass and the 

 second through a good pair of glasses. 



April 17th, 1901, watched a Ruffed 

 Grouse drum seven times. Until start- 

 ing to drum he sits huddled on a log 

 facing at right angles to direction in 

 which it lays. Then he straightens 

 up with tail pressed against side of 

 the log and ruffs out till through drum- 

 ming. The tip of the wings extended 

 then touch the log for a moment be- 

 fore closing and the tail is raised 

 from the log, spread like a fan. Then 

 the ruff and tail gradually subside and 

 he resumes his first position. The 

 sound is produced by rapid beating of 

 his wings against his sides. The wing 

 beats are long, slow and distinct at 

 commencement but much shorter and 

 quicker in middle and end period of 

 performance. 



April 26th, 1913, watched a Ruffed 

 Grouse drum several times through 

 my glass at distance of about thirty 

 yards. He was sitting crossways on a 

 log as usual. After drumming he sits 

 on the log with wings dropped and tips 

 of primaries touching log in front of 

 his toles, tail straight out behind a 

 couple of inches above the log. As he 

 starts to drum he rises to his full 

 height, beating his sides with his 

 wings and brings his unspread tail 

 tight against side of log. In middle of 

 the act his position has same resemb- 

 lance to that of a Penguim standing 

 erect. As he finishes drumming, ruffs, 

 wings and tail are extended and the 

 last is raised from the log and tilted 

 up in fan shape. He then subsides 

 into his first position of motionless 

 drowsiness which he maintains for 

 several minutes before going through 

 the performance again. 



I am unable to say to which sub-spe- 

 cies the Ruffed Grouse of this district 

 belong. Acocrding to ranges given 



