92 PROCEEDINGS MANCHESTER INSTITUTE 



94. Coliiius vir^iiiianus (lyinn.)- Bob-whiTe. 



A rather rare permanent resident of the Transition valleys of 

 southern New Hampshire. Owing to the great numbers of 

 these birds which have been introduced into New England from 

 the south in recent years, it is now impossible to say what pro- 

 portion, if any, of those at present found, are native bred. That 

 southern New Hampshire is a part of the bird's natural range, 

 is evident, however, as that careful c4ironicler, Belknap (1792, 

 vol. HI, p. 170) mentions it over a century ago, as a bird of 

 New Hampshire. Mr. C. F. Goodhue ('77a, p. 146) also gives 

 it as a rare resident at Webster in the '70's. Our severe win- 

 ters appear to keep the birds in check, notwithstanding the fre- 

 quent restocking. The repeated failure of southern birds to 

 survive the cold seasons is hardly to be wondered at, when even 

 the native birds, inured by long years of natural selection to the 

 northern climate, can barely hold their own on our southern 

 border. During the summer of 1899, I thrice observed a single 

 bird in the Saco valley at Intervale, though it is highly improb- 

 able that it was other than an introduced specimen which had 

 been loosed in the neighboring region. I know of none having 

 been observed in the locality before or since. 



95. Canachites canadensis canace (lyinn.). Cana- 

 dian Spruce Grouse. 



A not uncommon permanent resident of the spruce and bal- 

 sam forests of the upper Canadian region, in the northern part 

 of the state, and along the higher peaks of the White Moun- 

 tains. It occurs on the Presidential Range in small ntimbers 

 and seems less common there than on the Carter- Moriah Range, 

 where at least one or two are almost sure to be seen in a few 

 hours' walk. On these mountains, it inhabits the rich, damp 

 belt of balsams and spruces from about 3,000 feet (on the south- 

 ern exposures) to the upper limit of the tree growth, at 4,800 to 

 5,000 feet. It also occurs in small numbers on the Twin Moun- 

 tains, on Moosilauke (4,810 ft.) and on the higher peaks of 

 the outlying Sandwich Range, as on Passaconaway (4,116 ft.) 

 where it was recorded by BoUes ('93b, p. 155) " in the autumn," 



