162 BIRDS 



during the mating season gives a great deal of attention to 

 his appearance. He is quite black in general color and 

 more or less barred with white underneath and above with 

 gray or reddish-brown. The female is not quite as large 

 as the male, and is not as dark in color. Above the eye of 

 the male there is a small area of bare skin, which is a bright 

 vermilion color. 



The nest, consisting of loosely arranged blades of grass 

 and a few stalks and twigs, is built by the hen on a slight 

 elevation of ground, usually under the low branches of a 

 spruce tree. 



The number of eggs varies greatly. Mr. Ridgway says 

 that they vary in number from nine to sixteen. The eggs 

 also vary greatly in color from a pale, creamy buff through 

 various shades to brownish-buff, and are irregularly spotted 

 with a deeper brown, though occasionally they are spotless. 



During the spring and summer months the food of the 

 Canada grouse consists very largely of the berries of plants 

 belonging to the heath family, such as the blueberry, the 

 huckleberry, and the barberry, as well as the tender buds of 

 the spruce. In the winter it feeds almost entirely on these 

 buds and the needle-like leaves of the spruce, the fir, or the 

 tamarack trees. At times they seem to show a preference 

 for certain trees and will nearly strip the foliage from them. 



RUFFED GROUSE 



Among New England sportsmen the Ruffed Grouse, 

 often called Partridge, is the favorite game bird. The true 

 ruffed grouse occurs in New York, westward through the 



