THE SHARP-TAILED GROUSE 75 



other balls, and the cause of the fight is always the 

 same — rivalry. 



The nest of the sharp-tail is built on the ground, and 

 contains from twelve to fifteen or even more eggs. The 

 coyote and the many prairie falcons are their chief nat- 

 ural enemies, and these are so abundant that it seems re- 

 markable how the sharp-tails manage to survive. The 

 hawks, though not very wild, usually managed to keep 

 just out of range of our guns. I often observed many 

 of them sitting on the tops of the telegraph poles, and 

 many were always in sight sailing overhead. They 

 did not seem to be afraid of a team, and a friend often 

 dropped out of our wagon, and walked behind it until 

 within easy range of a hawk on a pole, and as he 

 stepped out to shoot, it was amusing to see the 

 alarmed bird jump into the air only to fall dead to his 

 unerring aim. A few steel-traps placed on the tele- 

 graph poles and in other likely places, would yield a 

 rich harvest of hawks, and prove a great benefit to both 

 the chickens and the ducks. At night a pack of coyotes 

 often came quite near our camp and howled, in their 

 dismal warbling fashion, their desire for our birds 

 which were hung up in the trees. 



The sharp-tail weighs about two pounds ; sometimes 

 as much as two and one-half. It feeds on grain, seeds, 

 berries, and insects, and its flesh is always in fine con- 

 dition for the table, and the young birds are tender and 

 delicious. I prefer all grouse broiled quickly before a 

 fire, but they are very good cooked in any way do- 

 mestic chickens are, and in the winter they may be 

 stewed or parboiled to advantage like domestic fowls 

 of mature age. Although the sharp tails, like all other 



