GAME 



BIRDS 



O F 



AMERICA 



The little ones all come from the shell together, and are fully equipped 

 to find their own living. They need the mother only as guard, defender, 

 and shelter. When they pop out of the eggs they leave the nest forever, 

 and thenceforth they are at home in Robin Hood's barn, and sleep wher- 

 ever weariness or night overtakes them. A little roving band of downy, 

 brownie, striped chicks, they keep close together, running here and there, 

 always hunting, picking insects from grass, ground, and foliage; while 

 the mother, stalking behind, herds them along with soft and gentle calls, 

 acting as rear guard, to give warning of any enemy that may be upon 

 their trail, to lead the destroyer away if she can, to defend them with her 

 life if she cannot, and to brood them beneath her maternal breast whenever 

 they are wet, cold, tired, or sleepy. Wherever night finds them there 

 they snuggle down to sleep, protected from cold and storm by her tire- 

 less devotion. Probably the little ones do not leave much scent; but the 

 fox, racoon, mink, weasel, dog, and cat may cross their trail at any 

 moment, crows, owls, and hawks menace them; yet commonly about 

 half of them escape all danger and grow and thrive while the summer 

 waxes and wanes. They learn to ^ 



fly by the end of the first week. 

 Before they are half grown they 

 leave the ground at night, and 

 roost with the mother in the trees. 

 When the "leaves begin to 

 turn" the well grown brood seeks 

 the wild grapevines and the wild 

 apple and thorn trees that it 

 may eat the fruit. When the 

 first heavy snow falls the few that 

 have safely run the gantlet of the 

 guns squat beneath the low- 

 spreading branches of some ever- 

 green tree and calmly allow the 

 snow to cover them if it will. 

 They are ready for winter now, 

 and have donned their snowshoes. 

 What! really? Yes, actually. 

 They have grown horny processes 

 on both sides of the toes which 

 will help to support their weight 

 on packed snow or thin crust, and 

 they are perfectly at home on 

 or under the snow. If a crust 



A YOUNG GROUSE 



This grousi was hut nine months old. At this age the 

 male is not distinguishable jrom the female. 



