{ 446 
DUSKY GROUS. 
TETRAO OBSCURUS, Say. 
PLATE CCCLXI. Mate anp FEMALE. 
As I have never seen this species in its native haunts, I am obliged 
_ to have recourse to the observations of those who have had opportunities 
of studying its habits. ‘The only accounts that can be depended upon 
are those of Dr Ricuarpson, Dr Townsrenpb, and Mr Nutratt, which 
I here give in order, beginning with what is stated respecting it in 
the Fauna Boreali-Americana by the first of these naturalists. 
* This large Grous inhabits the Rocky Mountains from latitude 
40° to 60°, and perhaps to a greater extent, for the limits of its range 
either northward or southward have not been ascertained. It has been 
known to the fur-traders for nearly thirty years ; but it was first intro- 
duced to the scientific world by Mr Say, who, in 1820, accompanied 
Major Lone to the source of the Missouri; and a female specimen, de- 
posited by him in the Philadelphia Museum, has lately been figured by 
the Prince of MusicNnano in his continuation of Wilson’s Ornithology. 
I had no opportunity of observing the habits of this bird myself, but 
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was informed by Mr Drummonp that, in the mornings during pairing 3 
a 
time, “ the usual station of the male is on some rocky eminence or large 
stone, where he sits swelling out the sides of his neck, spreading his 
tail, and repeating the ery of “* Coombe, Coombe,” in a soft hollow 
tone. Its food consists of various berries, and its flesh is very pala- 
table. Mr ALExanpDER Stewart, a chief-factor of the Hudson’s Bay 
Company, who has often crossed the mountains, informs me that the 
males of this species fight each other with such animosity, that a man 
may take one of them up in his hand before it will quit its antagonist.” 
Dr Ricuarpson adds in a note, that “ the description and figure 
of Mr Say’s specimen agree so completely with our younger female 
specimens, that there can be no doubt of their specific identity ; but it 
is proper to observe that there is some discrepancy in the dimensions. 
The Prince of Musienano states the total length of the bird to be 
-eighteen inches, that of the wing nine inches and a half. The wing 
