﻿BIRDS. 
  

  

  149 
  

  

  our 
  inquiry 
  as 
  to 
  increase 
  or 
  decrease 
  of 
  black 
  game 
  on 
  Lord 
  

   Moray's 
  property, 
  informs 
  us 
  : 
  — 
  1 
  They 
  are 
  just 
  about 
  the 
  same 
  in 
  

   numbers 
  as 
  when 
  I 
  last 
  wrote 
  you. 
  They 
  are 
  perhaps 
  a 
  little 
  

   more 
  numerous 
  this 
  season 
  (1894). 
  No 
  old 
  cocks 
  are 
  shot, 
  and 
  

   there 
  is 
  no 
  alteration 
  in 
  the 
  condition 
  of 
  the 
  ground.' 
  

  

  Lagopus 
  scoticus 
  (Lath.). 
  Red 
  Grouse. 
  

  

  Local 
  Names. 
  — 
  Muir-hen, 
  Muir-fowl. 
  

  

  Just 
  as 
  surely 
  as 
  driving 
  increases 
  the 
  number 
  of 
  Grouse, 
  so 
  surely 
  

   does 
  turning 
  grouse-ground 
  into 
  deer-ground 
  decrease 
  them, 
  the 
  

   cause 
  that 
  operates 
  for 
  that 
  increase 
  in 
  the 
  one 
  case 
  being 
  naturally 
  

   absent 
  in 
  the 
  other. 
  And 
  not 
  only 
  that, 
  but 
  there 
  are 
  few 
  forests 
  

   wherein 
  ordinary 
  shooting 
  after 
  the 
  stag-stalking 
  season 
  is 
  over 
  is 
  

   permitted 
  ; 
  thus 
  the 
  ground 
  gets 
  stocked 
  with 
  nothing 
  but 
  old 
  

   birds, 
  which 
  drive 
  out 
  the 
  younger 
  ones, 
  besides 
  which 
  the 
  old 
  

   birds 
  become 
  less 
  prolific 
  with 
  age. 
  Again, 
  burning 
  is 
  not 
  con- 
  

   ducted 
  on 
  the 
  same 
  lines 
  in 
  the 
  one 
  case 
  as 
  in 
  the 
  other. 
  The 
  

   grouse-ground 
  is, 
  or 
  should 
  be, 
  burned 
  with 
  a 
  close 
  regard 
  to 
  the 
  

   acreage 
  of 
  the 
  whole, 
  as 
  well 
  as 
  to 
  the 
  description 
  of 
  ground 
  

   burnt, 
  because 
  heather 
  in 
  some 
  localities 
  will 
  reach 
  its 
  best 
  con- 
  

   dition 
  in 
  five 
  or 
  six 
  years, 
  whereas 
  in 
  others 
  it 
  will 
  take 
  double 
  

   that 
  time, 
  or 
  even 
  more, 
  to 
  do 
  so. 
  In 
  forests 
  much 
  larger 
  extents 
  

   are 
  burnt, 
  and 
  provided 
  good 
  patches 
  are 
  left 
  in 
  these 
  places 
  for 
  

   the 
  deer, 
  well 
  sheltered 
  from 
  the 
  cold 
  winds, 
  the 
  amount 
  burned 
  

   is 
  of 
  little 
  moment. 
  It 
  is 
  almost 
  superfluous 
  to 
  add 
  that 
  vermin 
  

   in 
  a 
  forest 
  is 
  not 
  so 
  closely 
  looked 
  after 
  as 
  on 
  a 
  grouse-moor. 
  All 
  

   these 
  things 
  tend 
  to 
  the 
  preservation 
  of 
  grouse 
  on 
  the 
  one 
  hand, 
  

   and 
  their 
  deterioration 
  on 
  the 
  other. 
  

  

  At 
  Guisachan, 
  Grouse 
  are 
  not 
  nearly 
  so 
  abundant 
  as 
  they 
  wcie 
  

   formerly, 
  though 
  part 
  of 
  the 
  ground 
  is 
  used 
  as 
  a 
  grouse 
  moor 
  : 
  but 
  

   of 
  late 
  we 
  have 
  noticed 
  that 
  there 
  is 
  much 
  more 
  partial 
  disease 
  than 
  

   formerly, 
  and 
  that 
  whereas, 
  years 
  ago, 
  disease 
  made 
  a 
  clean 
  sweep, 
  

   after 
  which 
  it 
  died 
  out 
  and 
  the 
  birds 
  got 
  as 
  abundant 
  again 
  as 
  

   ever, 
  now 
  it 
  hangs 
  about, 
  and 
  though 
  perhaps 
  never 
  so 
  devastat- 
  

   ing 
  as 
  before, 
  still 
  never 
  allows 
  a 
  really 
  full 
  stock 
  to 
  get 
  up. 
  This, 
  

   at 
  least, 
  is 
  our 
  experience 
  in 
  Sutherland 
  and 
  two 
  other 
  places 
  

   in 
  the 
  northern 
  part 
  of 
  our 
  an 
  a. 
  

  

  In 
  Sutherlandshire 
  this 
  partial 
  disease 
  is 
  very 
  apparent 
  still, 
  

  

  