﻿BUFFED 
  GROUSE. 
  29 
  

  

  where 
  grouse 
  are 
  decreasing 
  under 
  persistent 
  gunning 
  the 
  open 
  season 
  

   should 
  be 
  further 
  limited 
  or 
  even 
  eliminated 
  for 
  a 
  period 
  of 
  years' 
  1 
  

   until 
  the 
  birds 
  have 
  recovered 
  something 
  of 
  their 
  former 
  numbers. 
  

   A 
  reasonable 
  limit 
  to 
  the 
  day's 
  bag 
  should 
  be 
  set 
  by 
  law. 
  Kansas, 
  

   Maine, 
  and 
  Wisconsin 
  restrict 
  the 
  number 
  to 
  15; 
  Montana 
  and 
  

   Oregon 
  to 
  10, 
  and 
  Ohio 
  to 
  6. 
  Vermont, 
  Pennsylvania, 
  and 
  Con- 
  

   necticut 
  have 
  a 
  limit 
  of 
  5 
  grouse 
  per 
  day 
  to 
  a 
  gun, 
  and 
  in 
  the 
  latter 
  

   State, 
  as 
  well 
  as 
  in 
  New 
  York, 
  no 
  more 
  than 
  36 
  can 
  be 
  taken 
  in 
  a 
  

   year. 
  By 
  similar 
  laws 
  other 
  States 
  can 
  aid 
  in 
  the 
  preservation 
  of 
  

   the 
  bird. 
  

  

  The 
  grouse 
  in 
  captivity 
  often 
  becomes 
  tame. 
  Sometimes, 
  indeed, 
  it 
  

   takes 
  kindly 
  to 
  the 
  henhouse. 
  It 
  has 
  laid 
  in 
  captivity, 
  and 
  its 
  eggs 
  

   found 
  in 
  the 
  woods 
  have 
  been 
  hatched 
  under 
  domestic 
  hens, 
  but 
  thus 
  

   far 
  nothing 
  like 
  successful 
  grouse 
  culture 
  has 
  been 
  approximated, 
  

   though 
  there 
  appears 
  to 
  be 
  no 
  reason 
  why 
  under 
  proper 
  conditions 
  

   it 
  should 
  not 
  be 
  successful. 
  Comprehensive 
  knowledge 
  of 
  the 
  bird's 
  

   food 
  habits 
  should 
  assist 
  in 
  solving 
  the 
  problem. 
  

  

  FOOD 
  HABITS. 
  

  

  The 
  food 
  habits 
  of 
  the 
  ruffed 
  grouse 
  have 
  been 
  investigated 
  in 
  con- 
  

   nection 
  with 
  the 
  present 
  paper 
  by 
  the 
  examination 
  of 
  208 
  stomachs 
  

   and 
  crops. 
  This 
  material 
  represents 
  food 
  taken 
  in 
  every 
  month, 
  but 
  

   chiefly 
  in 
  the 
  colder 
  half 
  of 
  the 
  year. 
  New 
  York 
  supplied 
  more 
  

   material 
  than 
  any 
  other 
  section; 
  Canada, 
  Pennsylvania, 
  and 
  Massa- 
  

   chusetts 
  came 
  next; 
  and 
  Nebraska, 
  Virginia, 
  Maryland, 
  Kentucky, 
  

   New 
  Hampshire. 
  Iowa, 
  Illinois, 
  Minnesota, 
  Michigan, 
  Wisconsin, 
  and 
  

   South 
  Dakota 
  each 
  contributed 
  a 
  smaller 
  part. 
  Analysis 
  of 
  the 
  food 
  

   showed 
  10.92 
  percent 
  of 
  animal 
  matter 
  and 
  89.08 
  percent 
  of 
  vegetable 
  

   matter. 
  The 
  animal 
  food 
  is 
  almost 
  all 
  insects. 
  The 
  vegetable 
  food 
  

   consists 
  of 
  seeds, 
  11.79 
  percent; 
  fruit, 
  28.32 
  percent; 
  leaves 
  and 
  buds, 
  

   48.11 
  percent, 
  and 
  miscellaneous 
  vegetable 
  matter, 
  0.86 
  percent. 
  The 
  

   insect 
  food 
  proper 
  includes 
  grasshoppers, 
  0.T8 
  percent 
  ; 
  caterpillars, 
  

   1.15 
  percent; 
  beetles, 
  4.57 
  percent, 
  and 
  miscellaneous 
  insects, 
  3.86 
  per- 
  

   cent. 
  Some 
  miscellaneous 
  animal 
  matter, 
  made 
  up 
  of 
  spiders 
  and 
  

   snails, 
  is 
  also 
  eaten. 
  The 
  ruffed 
  grouse 
  eats 
  a 
  somewhat 
  smaller 
  pro- 
  

   portion 
  of 
  insects 
  than 
  the 
  bobwhite, 
  but, 
  like 
  it, 
  feeds 
  on 
  them 
  to 
  a 
  

   large 
  extent 
  in 
  the 
  breeding 
  season. 
  

  

  Insect 
  Food. 
  

  

  Grouse 
  shot 
  by 
  the 
  writer 
  at 
  Chocorua, 
  N. 
  H., 
  in 
  September, 
  1898, 
  

   were 
  feeding 
  largely 
  on 
  the 
  red-legged 
  grasshopper 
  (Melanoplus 
  

  

  « 
  Iu 
  Ohio 
  the 
  season 
  has 
  been 
  closed 
  until 
  1908, 
  in 
  Illinois 
  until 
  1909, 
  and 
  m 
  

   Missouri 
  until 
  1910. 
  

  

  