The sScarcitv, of Raffed Oroase in 1907 



By E. Seymour Woodruff. 



T 



Photo, by Herbert K. ,Iolj 



HE ruffed grouse 

 (Bonasa umbellus), 

 more c o m monl y 

 known as partridge in 

 the north and pheasant 

 in the southern and mid- 

 dle states (though it has 

 no generic relation to 

 either), is pre-eminently 

 the king of all our game 

 birds. 



In this State, as well 



as in all parts of its 



range, except perhaps 



the extreme northern 



portion of Canada, the ruffed grouse is strictly nonmigratory and a resident 



throughout the year, breeding wherever found. 



It is partial to an undulating and hilly country, one well wooded and 

 covered with considerable undergrowth, interspersed with cultivated fields 

 and meadow lands. But with the continued destruction of the timber and 

 consequent increase in cleared and cultivated land, this noble bird has 

 steadily decreased in numbers, and in some sections been almost entirely 

 exterminated. Fortunately, however, there is still plenty of cover left to 

 harbor the birds, and because of the more strict enforcement of the game 

 laws of late years, they have managed to hold their own fairly well during 

 the last decade and until the beginning of the past year (1907). And this 

 in spite of the increasing army of sportsmen, who give the bird but little 

 rest throughout the open season, as well as the numerous four-footed and 

 winged enemies that prey upon it at all seasons. 



371 



