COLUMBIAN SHASP-TAILED GROUSE 559 



upper tail coverts; scapulars marked with white wedges; tail sharply pointed, the 

 middle tail feathers being about an inch longer than the rest and marked with 

 brownish black and buffy white; rest of tail feathers chiefly white; outer surface 

 of closed wing irregularly marked with clay color, or pale cinnamon, and' brown, 

 many of the feathers with sharply contrasted white spots at ends; flight feathers 

 and primary coverts dull brown, spotted with white on outer webs; margin and 

 forward lining of wing mixed white and dull brown; rest of lining and axillars, 

 white ; under surfaces of flight feathers, pale brown ; under surface of body white, 

 with bold, V-sliaped marks of brown paralleling margins of feathers; markings 

 heaviest on lower breast; chest, sides and flanks, barred with dark brown, 

 clay color and white; belly and lower tail coverts almost or wholly immaculate; 

 feathering of legs and feet grayish brown; toes and horny fringes gray; naUs 

 blackish. Total length "15.00-19.00" inches (381-482 mm.) (Eidgway, 1900, 

 p. 203) ; folded wing 7.68-8.47 (195-215) ; bill along culmen 0.57-0.68 (14.5- 

 17.4); tarsus 1.52-1.85 (38.7—47.0) (four specimens, from British Columbia, 

 Alberta and Colorado). Juvenile plumage: Top of head mixed black and light 

 rusty brown; stripe from side of bill through eye, yellomsh white; another stripe 

 below eye, mixed black and yellowish brown; chin and fore-throat, white; whole 

 upper sui-face largely yellowish brown, with irregular black patches on the feathers 

 and white shaft streaks ; outer surface of closed wing grayish brown, spotted with 

 dull White ; feathers of breast, sides and flanks, pale yellowish brown, with small 

 black spots and white shaft streaks; belly white; feathers on tarsus pale buff. 

 Natal plumage: Ground color of upper surface straw yellow becoming buffy 

 along middle line, the whole boldly spotted with black; whole lower surface 

 deep straw yellow, without markings; bill horn color; feet (dried) yellow. 



Marks for field identification — Medium size (much smaller than Sierra 

 Grouse and Sage-hen), unbanded, pointed tail (whence the name Sharp-tail), 

 mixed color pattern, of pale effect, on upper surface, and pure white ground of 

 under surface. 



Voice — A loud Icuk-lcuk-lcuk, when startled (Cooper, 1870o, p. 533) ; males in 

 the spring have a loud cackling note (Vernon Bailey in Bailey, 1902, p. 132). 



Nest — On prairie land in tuft of grass or near a small hillock; a slight de- 

 pression with sparse lining of grass-stalks and root-fibres (Baird, Brewer and 

 Eidgway, 1874, III, p. 438). 



Eggs — 10 to 15, short ovate in shape, measuring in inches, 1.54 to 1.83 by 

 1.22 to 1.36 (in millimeters, 39.0 to 46.5 by 31.0 to 34.5), and averaging 1.70 by 

 1.26 (43.0 by 32.0) ; creamy buff to pale olive brown, unmarked, or else finely 

 dotted with reddish broivn (Bendire, 1892, p. 101). 



General distribution — Of all races of the Sharp-tailed Grouse: Central and 

 western North America from central Alaska and Ungava south to Illinois and 

 northeastern California; of the Columbian Sharp-tailed Grouse (subspecies 

 columbianus) : central British Columbia and central Alberta, south to northeastern 

 California, Utah, and central Colorado (A. O. TJ. Check-list, 1910, p. 144). 



Distribution in California — Formerly common in the Modoc region. Ee- 

 corded from Canoe Creek [near Cassel, northeastern Shasta County] and upper 

 Pit Eiver (Newberry, 1857, p. 94), and Camp Bidwell, Modoc County (HensTiaw, 

 1880&, p. 317). No perfectly authenticated instances of occurrence within late 

 years; probably now nearly or quite extinct within the state. 



The history of the Columbian Sharp-tailed Grouse, as far as it 

 concerns California, is like that of a considerable number of North 

 American game and non-game birds, which were once extremely abun- 



