248 CLASS AVES. 



lowish-white, with red spots ; before laying, the female col- 

 lects around her nest a quantity of small wood, feathers, and 

 leaves, to cover her eggs, when she is obliged to leave them. 

 The incubation lasts three weeks, and the young are born 

 covered with a reddish-yellow down. They follow the mother 

 immediately, who conducts them to ants'* nests, and into 

 places covered with myrtle bushes, the berries of which they 

 eat ; the young do not fly so soon as those of the last species ; 

 they are two months old, before they are sufficiently vigorous 

 to follow their mother upon trees. Both young and old are 

 more easily accustomed to captivity than the wood-grous. 

 Nevertheless it is not possible to preserve them for any length 

 of time in a confined prison ; they should also frequently 

 receive those buds and berries which constitute their habitual 

 nourishment ; these are of various kinds, and grain, as with 

 the other species of this genus, constitutes with them but an 

 accessary aliment. 



The black-grous is very wild, and remarkable for its cunning 

 in avoiding snares of all kinds. Its habitual sojourn is moun- 

 tainous countries, where the birch -tree grows abundantly; but 

 it is also to be found in pine and beech woods, bordering on 

 heaths, pasturages, or fields. Though not a bird of passage, 

 it changes place more frequently and more easily than others 

 of the genus. In winter these birds unite in numerous 

 troops, traverse the woody mountains, and often descend into 

 the vallies. In spring, the season of reproduction, many 

 hundreds of them unite on some eminence covered with heatli, 

 and there the males combat desperately, until the least 

 vigorous are forced to retire, and yield the territory to the 

 victors ; the latter then disperse, mount trees, descend among 

 the females, assume grotesque attitudes, and utter cries, after 

 the manner of the last described species. 



There is nearly as much difficulty in killing or taking this 

 bird as the wood-grous ; still the peasants of Siberia, and 



