FOREST AND STREAM. 



253 



we do not learn that colfifs art mire intense in the autumn 

 than lliey are in the spring. Were llae trout of one water 

 pink, of another white, jind of auolber yellow, we might 

 maintain and perhaps determine that different conditions of 

 food in the water, of adjacent shade or shelter, or of the 

 quality of the water itself, nude differenca ia color, but in- 

 asmuch as the tints are greatly diverse under conditions pre- 

 cise!, t be same; and, since we are liable to scoop white and 

 red flsli at the same dip, we may perhaps be satisfied to be- 

 lieve that the same Creator who has mule the texture of one 

 man's fle.-h to be finer than another's and his skin to differ in 

 color— one to be blonde, another brunette, another tawny, one 

 florid and another p.le, and all Caucasian still— has also cre- 

 ated variety iu the tints of trout flesb, aud diversity in the 

 leives which ripen upon tUe same parent stalk. If there is 

 any cause mure latent, or one which science may claim lo have 

 discovered, »e shall be glad to learn it. But we think it 

 quite as likely that savaus will be able to inform us why the 

 water of Lake Superior is black, cf Luke Michigan gri en, and 

 of Lake Geo.ge blue, or what eousiiiutes color in gems or hues 



in the pi ism. 



* — -»— . 



— TCew Jersey bids fair to have her pisciculturist interests 

 nttende i to with gre.it efficiency. Major E. S. Anderson, 

 Fish iii.miuisMonei at rreutou, says extensive preparations 

 have been made to supply me water of that State adapted to 

 salmon with fry. Hail a million of salmon eggs have been 

 received by the New Jersey ummissioners from the U. S. 

 Fishery iu Shasta County, Cal , for iii-irtbauon in the streams 

 ot thai State. Tin \ have come to hand iu tine order, there 

 not being over five per cent of loss. The Liioninissbmers, 

 Laving (levoled much attention lo the propagation of salmon 

 aud I, lactt-baas, will now turn it to the re*t .ration of the trout 

 streams of that. Stale, many Of which ate peculiarly well- 

 adopted to this fish, and formerly abounded in them. 



- Movements of Kbi.s. — Uolyoke, Mass, Oct. 28.— The first 

 movement ol eels look place oh Weduetday nig it last, 23d 

 Inst , and from the number of dead and cut eels lying around 

 the eddies aud Still water below the nulls, the movement was 

 a heavy one. Tba mis will move now at every storm, and 

 always at night. Tue first heavy cold snap will end the 

 stampede. 



iVole. — When they find fp'wn in eels they will nit require 

 the use i if a magnifier to doubtfully pronounce it eel spawn 

 They will hud two distinct lobes, and each tgg distinctly visi- 

 ble to the nuked eye. Tuoxus Cualm*ks. 



Sethi Green's Latest Mkd\l.— Hippening into Welters' 

 je.\eiry suae le eutly we observed, in a show case, a massive 

 gold medal, which, on inspection, orov, d to be one lately 

 awarded to Mjl.li Urei-u by the Hueietie d' AceUmatntion. oi 

 Fin nee, of which me.uiiou was made at the time. It has jus 

 attiv d, and Air. YV oilers lias borrowed it to exhibit for s. few 

 days at his more, It is ike exact weight of three is 30 gold 

 pit-Q s, an. i is appropriately inscribed Around ihe margiu is 

 the name uf < In- society above referred to, and in ihe cenire it 

 reads, -'To Mod's. Beth Green. iSalmo fonUwuis " (tiroon 

 trout). This is the fourth medal awarded Mr. Green by Ihe 

 6*me society. Many people have ai 

 iuio tome competuiveexbibjliou u 

 the-e mei.ais are awarded for so. 

 Such is not the cise. Th ae awt 

 evidences of the lecoguitioti be 

 ty several y 



i idea that Selb Green ente 

 l I'arts periodically, and that 

 me superior exhibit made. 

 »rds are off red as renewed 

 received from ihe French 

 : pisciculturist 



Am. no. f'levious lo 1-G4 no rish breeding had resulted in 

 iiiipivgualii g more than 25 per Cint ot the spawn, which ren- 

 der) d It of Jllle ViIup, comparatively. Gre. n discovered a 

 process of accomplishing ihe iltsiud te.-ult vviihoutihe use oi 

 water, and bis Brat i xperiineni snowed 95 per cent. Hi pro- 

 Cess, which be COO ill-Veil in perle"i, was kept Secret for three 

 or toui yi ais, during which lime be profited greatly by it, from 

 Ihe sale of ihe spawn wbieh was superior to any other ihu. 

 Could be proeuTi 0. The news iu time reached Fiance, when 

 they Hud ij.-eti experimenting lor years, of the results achieved 

 here, and mloruniiiou on the subject was sought. Setb ureen 

 was iltu first to communicate tlie desired iutonudii m regard- 

 log U&piocess. which immediately r. ceivi d the recognition ul 

 the sucli i.v The great BUCC bS I Hey are Imviug every J Car in 

 Stocking the sire mis ot France is ihe cause ot so many "medals 

 li. ii g voted lo Mr! Gieeu ai various meetings of the society. 

 It may ttlaO besoiied, to thecivuii of Kocheslcr, i [iat he has re- 

 Ceivid similar tokens i f tic igninon Irom ihe Uowrnuieuis oi 

 Germany, S.uily ami ether countries.— liuchuLer Uiuun, 



ABOUT OUR GROUSE. 



IN the matter of game birds, the sportsman of the United 

 States is certainly well favored. Nut to mention thi 

 myriads Of water-fowl which in spring aud fall throng our 

 bays mid water courses, or Ihe shore-birds, which, during 

 their migrations, swarm in the localities in which they most 

 deligbt, we of North America are so well provided with galli- 

 naceous birds that there Sb no localiiy within our borders iu 

 which some species ol this order does not occur in abundanca. 

 Without counting the wild tuikey, now virtually extinct save. 

 in the South and Southwest, we have six species of quail and 

 nine of grouse, all, or almost all, of which are within reach of 

 the sportsman who cares to look for them. 



It is of our grouse that we would speak just now; the 

 finest of all the game birds, and a group on whose pursuit 

 more time, thought and money is perhaps expended than 

 upon any other. 1 he moors of Scotland, which alone furnish 

 to the British sportsman his grouse shooting, often bring in to 

 the owner a revenue equal 10 that of the best arable land. 

 Here iu America, however, where all shooting is free, the 

 gunner his a wide range of choice. He can seek on the 

 elevated plains of the great interior basin the sage grouse, as 

 large as a lien turkey, or can climb Pike's Peak iu Search of 

 the little while-tailed ptaimigan, scaicely bigger than a quail; 

 he can shoot at the ruffed grouse as he darts like a rifle ball 



through the Eastern foresls, or, in the open prairie, can knock 

 over the pinnated giouse or the sharp-tail. 



All the grouse are strong-scented birds, lie well to a dog, 

 are swift on the wing, and are more or less diffiflllt lo bring 

 to bag, and it is the possession of these qualities which has 

 caused them to stand so high in the sportsman's regard 



The true grouse are confined to the Northern Hemisphere, 

 and there are but fifteen or sixteen species, of which, as has 

 been remarked, North America claims nine. The Old World 

 members of the group are perhaps even better known to most 

 readers than our own, and accoutitsof grouse shooting iu 

 Europe have several limes appeared in the columns of Fokbst 

 ANDSraEAM, as have also descriptions of the sprcies to be 

 round there. The most important, of these, and one now ex- 

 tinct in the Briiish Isles, but still occurring iu more or less 

 abundance in Norway, Sweden and northern Russia, is thi 

 well-known cock of the woods, or capercailzie, whose Itk or 

 " play " hrs furnished a theme on which many a traveler has 

 dwelt at length. This superb bird is about three feel, in 

 length, and often weighs fifteen pounds. Besides the caper- 

 cailzie are to be mentioned the red grouse of Scotland, the 

 hazel grouse, closely allied to our ruffed grouse, and several 

 species of ptarmigan, whoso relationships to the New World 

 species have perhaps not yet been sufficiently studied, 'lhere 

 is also in northern Asia a curious species which has been 

 described under t he generic name Fakipennin, and which iu 

 habits, at least, would seem to be the analogue of our Canada 

 grouse. 



The true grouse are to be distinguished from their relatives 

 by the more or less dense feathering of tho tarsus (shank) to 

 or beyond the toes, the pectinated, or comb-like, margiua of 

 Ihe toes, the naked papillate strip of skin over the eye, and 

 the deep groove for the nostril. Several species possess pe- 

 culiar tufts of neck feathers, in some cases soft, in others 

 hard and bristly, and several have dilatable air cells on the 

 side of the neck, which iu the breeding season are often enor 

 mously distended. 



Our birds of this sub-family include the familiar ruffed 

 grouse, prairie cbickeu and sharp-tail, and the Canada sage 

 and dusky grouse, with the willow, rock anil white-tailed 

 ptarmigans, the last six species being almost wholly unknown 

 io any but i ho naturalist. Of the tir<=t three little need be 

 said, but the last-named well deserve a few words of descrip- 

 riot), for every sportsman should be familiar at least with the 

 game birds if his own country. 



The Caortdt grouss is an inhabitant of the pine and tama- 

 rack swamps of the North, and is found in limited numbers 

 in the Adirondack region and in Maine. In Canadi it is mon 

 abundant, and a variety, Oiiiuce etividewU var. fruiMini, is 

 found in tbe Rocky M mntains near our northern boundary. 

 Owing, however, to the nature of its favorite haunts the 

 Canada grouse is little bunted except in winter. The swamps, 

 iu wnieh it fin Is the food which best suits is, are imjraeuci- 

 ble at m ist se is ins for man or dog on account of tbe soft 

 mud, over which ihe grotnu can easily nuke their way, but 

 which would at once ou.ulf tbe.ir pursuers. Iu wiuier, how- 

 ever, when these swamps freeze, mmv of the birds ar<= killed, 

 aud at this Season lb. y are sometimes sent iu great numbers 

 to tbe New York markets, «ud g oj specimens mey some- 

 times bo ob amed there. Owing, however, to tne lac 

 that Ihe birds are often k. pt for many days without hiv- 

 ing the entrails removed, the flesh is apt to have a disagree 

 able, piney or resinous taste, arising, of course, from the 

 nature of their food. This species is one of the smallest ot 

 our grouse, the male is black in color, wLh wavy markings 

 of dark gray above and below, and with numerous wlu.e 

 pa cues ou the brea t and belly. There ia a leiiniual baud oi 

 orange brown on the tail feathers. The lemde is somewhat 

 smaller, and in c 'lor is reddish brown, markid ev.rywheie 

 a ub black on ss-liues. To some of our readers litis species is 

 of eouise well known, but we iui-igine that the great maj »rily 

 are unacquiiultd with it. 



The nearest relative of the Canada grouse is the dusky. 

 giouse, which inhabits the Hooky mountains, but a considera- 

 tion, uf its Characteristics must be po,ip med to another day. 

 « — ~*. — • . 



Arrival of a ScmNiiFio WouKiB. — Our old and indefati- 

 gable Lund, Fred. A. Uber, Esq (.I'Ted Beverly) is en bis re- 

 turn home from the West Indies after an absence of nearly 

 twoyeais. As our readers know, he bus been ingagtd iu 

 codecting objects of natural history under tho patronage of 

 the Smithsonian Institution, and has been vet y successful iu 

 collecting birds especially, having, discovered sixteen spe- 

 cies new to science ai.d thrown much fight upon the history 

 and habits of others. Ho has collected some thousand speci- 

 mens in all, which have been regularly sent to Mr. G. H. Law- 

 rence, of this city, for idenl'licaiion and classification. Caia- 

 logues of the different islands which he has visited, including 

 Dominica, St. Vincent, Antigua, Martinique, Barbuda, Guada- 

 loupe and Granada, are in course of publication at Washing- 

 ton. Mr. Lawrence has done Mr. Ober very material service 

 from first to last, in promoting his enterprise and investiga- 

 tion. 



. — -•- — . 



Long LuaaeD Fitoas.— Iu Minnesota they are endeavoring 

 lo propagate frogs with, legs of double siz% so as to command 

 the market, the legs being the only part which, are considered 

 edible. The method consists in dexterously breaking the 

 backs of diminutive frogs, just after they quit the tadpole 

 state, so as lo m ike humpbacks of them, At present m ist of 

 them die, but it is hoped to secure from the sui viv ma a con- 

 stant strain of short-bodied, long-legged frogs, whose value 



will be much enhanced in the ryes of caterers. The product 

 thus far reported amounts to 3.090 dozen legs, of which two- 

 thiids have been shipped to St. Louis, where they bring an 

 average nt twenty cents per dozen. It issaidthat Dr. SweeDy, 

 one of the Minnesota Fish Commissioners, is interesting bim. 

 ►elf in the business, and hopes for such encouragement as 

 will enable him to devote his entire attention to it. It! 

 wonderful to see this new breed of frogs leap 1 



Sonq Birds.— Messrs. Rtiche Bros., of Chatham slreet, are 

 the largest importers of song birds in ibis city. They are now- 

 receiving canaries at the rate of 1,000 per week, most of them 

 being good singing birds. They also have gold-finches, lin - 

 nets, bull-finches, thrushes, and, besides, all kinds of game 

 birds, including a quantity of wood ducks, wild tuikcys and 

 prairie chickens. Ot monkeys and wild animals they have no 

 end. 

 y • ••• 



The Lampern.— Mr. Editor: The account or the capture 

 of ibis fish, given in Forkst amd Stream for October 17, re- 

 minds me of finding a specimen some jvais since attached to 

 a paddle-fUli, Pohjidoii polium, while fishing in Lake Pepin, 

 Minn. The patruie-fish was lying dead ou the shore with the 

 lampern sticking to its gilla. I preserved it as a curiosity, 

 never having met wiib it before in fresh water, I hough twice 

 in salt water. Storer describes seven species of Pr.Uomyznnidm 

 iu \merica, three of which, perhaps, are found in fresh water. 

 Kicliardson, in "Fauna Boreali Americana," mentions one 

 found in Great Slave Like adhering to a salmon. P. argm- 

 tsui, of Ohio River, described by Kirtlaud, is eleven inches 

 long. My specinum was about six inches in length. I think 

 that 3 our and my specimens belong to a new species. 



Faithfully yours, 8. C. Claeki. 



Jaimam Plain, Oct. 23, 1878. 



Propagation of Pabtiudoim — Mr. L W. Atwood, the 

 well known oyster dealer, of Portland, Maine, hreedor of the 

 celebrated trotting hors; Camors, has been slrpping partridges 

 to WcllUeet, Ma-s , his native home, with a vi -w of slocking 

 the woods there with them. Mr. Atwood is a thorough 

 »pi Ttsman. enj lying eq tally well a flue horse, shooting wood- 

 cock over his tine brace of setters, throwing the fly for ihe 

 speckled beauties, or a skim over the wave iu his " sharpie ;" 

 also a constant reader of the Forest and Stusam He is 

 now doing a good deed —one wlrch will live long alter him — 

 iu stocking the woods of bis former home witn this kind of 

 bird, which is the pride of Maine. 



Piooide8 Artioup.— Boston, Oat. 24 — In your latest issue, 

 >n ihe report of tbe Linnean Society, ref> rriiisj lo the <ggs> of 

 I'.e Aiciic three-toed woodpecker, you say : " This is the first 

 authentic ited iustance of tbe finding of the ejr«a of this biid, 

 etc." This is n in stake. In a History of N irtb American 

 Buds by B.ird, Brewer & Kidge.way. vol II , p. 532, you 

 Mil find two references, both perfectly authentic. The eggs 

 from Lake Superior were identified by Eliot Cab it, Esq., and 

 be p itenis shot. An egg of this set is iu my ciVmet. The 

 ggilentitied by Mr. Kue-ihoff is, if I am not mistaken, in 

 ihe cahection of the Saiithsjnian. Yours, T. M. B. 



Vultures and Tuberv Buzzirds.— It is not generally 

 knuwuthat the " buzzirds" soaring over our State are of two 

 species, but if. is a fact. One is tbe well-known turkey buz- 

 zarcj, the other the black vulture. The buzzird is nioio 

 mads imely firmed, more grac ful, both 111 tbe air and upon 

 be ground His wimis are longer aud his lad more pointed. 

 Ti'e skin of his bead and neck are of a reddish c ilor The 

 mile parts of ihe black vulture are of a dull black or slate 

 c ilor; they are easily mid apirt in ill- air. Tne black vulture 

 ties heavily, (lapping his wiuj;s quickly, aud then skimming 

 ilot.g for a hundred yards or so, his short, square lail being 

 spn admit like a fan. The buzzird, on the contrary, holds 

 his wings at rest, not in a horiz mtal po-if.ion, but slightly in- 

 Clined upward. He will skim along in 1 his WHy for u quarter 

 of a mile or more, without a single flip of his wings, some- 

 times on a level line and often ou an upward course. How 

 be can soar upward without a movement of his wines has 

 never been found out. Of ad created thing* buzzards and 

 vultures have lln least Sense of sill, llltlg. 't'hej find all of 

 their food by sight, for they possess this sen.e iu a high de- 

 gn 1: of peilecii n. Tin se birds form a complete net work in 

 I lie air, and while hunting th ir f md »oar through the heavens 

 in great circles, each bird uv, rlo. king a large li>,c of coun- 

 try. Now, the bird nearest the carrion drops down from ids 

 loiiy hi ight and dies directly toward it. His ac'i- ns are ob- 

 served by the bird nearest him, who, well knowing the rea- 

 son of his suodeii freak, follows alter; this one is followed 

 by another, who is in turn observed by auoriier si ill luitlier 

 off, aud so on umil, finally, there nuy be birds at, lb • cat riou 

 which two hours before were perhaps fi.tv or six y mil s 

 away, or even more, that this is coireci can be proved ly 

 careful observation. — Florida Star. 



—Prof. D. S. Jordan of Ohio ha* isearly finished a large 

 woik on American Iehthyolo.y, which is to de.cnbe ah of 

 our species, both fresh water aud marine. 



Animals Received atthb PurLiosiPHu Zoolooical Gakdbm for 

 thk Wkhk JiisDimMjct. 2ii.— Oue (ir^j rqur.el, &i. run caioinm*ii; 

 oneftne-ias mo isey, Macacue erythncm; one light, liawk, Churdetlu 

 vitginiamts; ),ine op issaai, Uide/phyn virgtuiana; feur ciihi oitona, 

 V/iamueko vulgaris; on: y.riela eur ssow, Crux carunculuta ; one 

 coatt. Aa*iua narica; one soreecU owl, Scops a»io: one li g. nosed snake 

 Meterodon plaiyrhinua ; oue catbird, Slimmc-uioiimnhia; one linnet, one 

 cbafnucti, all presented ; one aiokle-Dilled curiew, ISwnwnn* longaros- 

 trti, i.urchased. Author S. Brown, Supt. 



PrrTeBUKa, Pa., Oct. 2T, i 8 7S. 

 Dear Sir— l take great Interem In the DItlmar powder. There has 

 been a laige quantity used In this section tnu year, and I near lr spoken 

 of Iu the li gliesi lerms. Cdpt. BoKardus told ine he had used over SOO 

 pounds this season, shooting- it la Ills heavy 10-bore, aud In his six 

 p und 20-bure w.thont siyntest Injury to his guua, and win most 

 sai itjtdctory resu ta. Such testimony is certainly worili tiavtni. 



Yuura, o. E. P.— U<lv. 



3" Forest and Scumuwill tie sent for fractions of a year 

 as follows: Six months, *3 ; three mouths, $1. To clubs of 

 two or more, $3 per annum. 



