The Capercaillie 1 1 
or three dead gladiators every spring. On one occasion Keay came upon two large 
cocks who had so successfully mauled each other as to be perfectly helpless. They lay 
facing each other with bloodshot eyes and open beaks. 
Shortly after writing Game Birds and Shooting Sketches, I felt that my knowledge 
of Capercaillie was very incomplete without witnessing the birds at the "lek" and 
trying to kill one by stalking, after the continental fashion. So one April morning I 
went to Murthly, and was told by Keay that he knew of a tree in the Big Wood there, 
where an old male was showing off. I spent the night at his cottage, and in darkness 
next morning we made our way through the forest. There was a slight paleness in the 
east when we heard the repeated cry of the Capercaillie cock, who was already uttering his 
" love-song," and advanced cautiously, being careful not to tread on any stick or brush 
against the branches of trees. We had arrived within 150 yards of the bird before I 
saw it, perched on the top of a withered Scotch fir. It was looking about intently, with 
its long neck stretched in a position of alarm. I thought it had seen us, but almost 
immediately it dropped the wings, threw out its neck, and began to call. I found that 
the description I had been given of being able to advance only three steps at a time 
during the final ecstasy was absolutely correct. I dare not take one more, as the bird 
was again erect and on the look-out. It was very exciting, but on the soft mossy ground 
I found no difficulty in getting within 30 yards, when an ounce of No. 4 shot completed 
the tragedy. Next day I stalked another cock, and not wishing to shoot it, tried to 
see how near I could get ; the approach being made to within 20 yards. Three days 
later, with James Boath, I stalked a cock on the high ground at Rohallion. Here I 
found the ground less in my favour, and it was only after considerable difficulty that 
I got within 40 yards of the bird, sitting on the high wall of the Buffalo park. 
In discussing the comparative ease of getting within shot of Scotch Capercaillie 
with my friend, Mr. Neville Henderson, who has shot many of these birds at the " lek " 
in Russia, he pointed out that the nature of the ground over which the stalker passes 
is the principal difficulty of making the approach. In Russia the ground of the forest is 
full of pools and marsh, or covered with noisy debris, whilst the woods are more open, 
the trees larger and greater conductors of sound. He agrees that even the wildest 
Capercaillie, and they are very shy in that continent, are quite unaware of external 
circumstances during the moments of passion when the three forward steps are made. 
Prince Furstenberg, who has stalked the cock Capercaillie regularly for many years, 
tells me that it frequently selects a spot on the ground or high rock on which to 
make its early morning display. In excess of excitement it will leap several feet in 
the air, flapping its wings, and uttering the preliminary call. He mentions also an 
interesting habit of the bird which does not seem to be known, namely, that it returns 
every evening for a short period to the "lek" tree or spot, but does not go through 
the same performance as the morning, but stands erect, looking about, and utters three 
notes, " ack-ack-eeack," as if about to be sick. All the time it maintains an attitude 
of vigilance, and has no moments of ecstasy, so that stalking is not possible. Austrian 
sportsmen think that we are most unsportsmanlike in shooting female Capercaillie i 
which they do not do, and we in turn fail to see the interest in potting a large bird 
sitting at 35 yards. But critics in any particular sport have no right to criticise that 
