GROUSE, PTARMIGAN 



-ssss:,- 



(309) Centrocercus uropha- 



sianUS (Bomp.) (Gr., spine tail; Lat., tail 

 pheasant). 



SAGE COCK ; SAGE HEN. 

 Largest of American grouse, weigh- 

 ing up to eight pounds. Tail long 

 and of stiff, narrow pointed feathers; 

 neck capable of great distension by 

 means of numerous air cells; in full 

 breeding plumage, the lower neck of 

 the male is adorned with a fringe of 

 hair-like filaments, below which are 

 scale-like white feathers. The hen 

 is much smaller and with no peculiar 

 feathers on the neck; the throat is 

 also white. L., 28.00; W., 12.00; 

 T., 12.00. Eggs — Six to twelve, 

 grayish-drab, specked with brown, 

 narrow, 2.20 .\ 1.55. 



Range — Sagebrush plains from 

 Sask. and B. C. south to Kan. and 

 eastern Cal. 



species will, like quail, live on or near cultivated land, the 

 former retreat before the advance of civilization. Their 

 habits are in all respects quite similar to those of the Chick- 

 ens; they utter similar booming sounds in spring. 



SAGE HENS are the very largest of the grouse family. 

 They get their name from the fact that they are habitually 

 found on sage plains in the west, and also feed almost entirely 

 upon sage leaves and various berries. Their colors are such 

 as to harmonize wonderfully with their surroundings; while 

 a walking or strutting bird looms up plainly because of its 

 size, one crouched on the ground can wdth difficulty be 

 discerned at a distance of but a few feet. The hen, when 

 incubating, sits very closely and will allow any one to pass 

 within a few feet without moving. After the eggs are laid, 

 the cock birds band together and leave all housekeeping 

 cares to the hens. They are quite wary and get up one at a 

 time with considerable noise of the wings as well as loud 

 cackling; it is quite difficult for them to get under way 

 because of their weight. 



