156 Tins COMMON BLACK GROUSE. 
ibcre U ahutitlanre of Tvnu?r, ant] pleiity of food, in 
tender aeett^ of the niHliL's^ and alpine j^n aHses. Tlio 
yotirtg are fidJom full grtuvn before the fiiist- of Si'p- 
tember ; a:ul even at Uhh Kcasoa, if iliey liavc hi^an 
Uiuiistuibi'd previously, thoy will altnosl sufft-'i- tJiL-m- 
selre« to ho liflud from amon^ tlie rank liorba^e be- 
fore t\ui poi liters. At diis iiino thii plmnnge of ilie 
yoiiitg is fioincwhat like ibat of tlic femitli^, a li«;lu(?r 
tint of y<»llo\visli-br(Hvn, njoiileil and crossed willi 
bars of bl.u k, the males commencing to gel llie blatk 
feailiera of iha luluU plumage, or to Kpot, as wports- 
ini'n ttTtn h; i\m nlrnosi ahvays comptiHial by the 
Li'g^innijig of OeUiber, liut doeM nut gain ii^ richness 
of glosui mid lustre before ihe foUou-ing Kprtng. 
During summer tbe general food is the nvctU of 
ibe vanuti* grasses, aod ihe bt-rriL^ of the dirterent 
aipine plairta, »ueb aa th« cran and crow berries, 
yaebtfrriei^, j^c.*; aird in winter the tender shoots of 
tJiQ &Vi catkins of birch and ha/A, silTurd tbem sup- 
port in the; wilder <li^trict9, and ofteii give their pe- 
Gubur Buvtjur to tbe fi^sli ; but iu all the lower die- 
tricts, where^ indeeil^ ibis bird h most abun dan t» tbe 
gleaning of llie stubble yitdda a plentifui meal. Fiekb 
of itirnips or rnpe are nlsio favouiiie feeding pliicea, 
BJid tbe leaves yiebl them a more cotivenicnt »up- 
ply of food <larijig bard frost, than they roulil else- 
U'here provide. In some places flocks of Imndredti 
" Vaccinium oxycoccu?, Emp(?trum nigrum, Vaccmium . 
myrtillua, Vitia Idan, und Arbutiia U va-ursJ, are nil sought 
after. 
