128 
GROUSE, PARTRIDGES, QUAILS, ETC. 
ming. The muffled wing-beats suggest distant thunder, though the 
sound is much the same at twenty feet or forty rods. I have often 
crept up within twenty or thirty feet of an old cock and watched 
him. Standing in a perfectly natural position, he begins without 
any warning. The wings are slightly raised and brought quickly 
down to the sides, one, two, three, four, five, six times, — you can 
count no farther, — the buzzing wings are lost in a blur, and the 
sounds blend in a crescendo roar. For hours at a time through the 
breeding season the drumming is kept up at intervals of from one 
to several minutes. It is heard mainly in the morning and evening, 
but irregularly at all times of day and night, though always from 
the same spot. * Vernon Bailey. 
300b. B. u. umbelloides (Dougl.). Gray Ruffed Grouse. 
Adult male. — Ruffs black, with bluish green gloss to tips ; upper parts 
gray, whole surface finely 
mottled gray and black, more 
or less washed with rufous, 
blotched with black, and 
streaked with white ; tail al¬ 
ways gray, with broad black 
subterminal band ; under 
parts white and huffy, barred 
with brown. Adult female : 
similar but smaller, with neck tufts rudimentary or obsolete. Young: 
similar to adult female, but browner, barring paler, less distinct, dim 
white, and neck tufts wanting. Length : 15.50-19.00, wing 7.00-7.50, tail 
5.50-7.00. 
Distribution. — Breeds in Canadian and Hudsonian zones, in the central 
Rocky Mountain system of the United States, British America, and 
Alaska. 
Nest. — A hollow at base of tree or rock, or by a fallen treetop or 
brush pile. Eggs: 8 to 14, varying from white to pinkish buff, stained 
with brown. 
Food. — Wild fruit and berries, seeds, buds, and green leaves. 
300c. B. u. sabini (Dough). Oregon Ruffed Grouse. 
Like B. u. umbelloides , but much darker; upper parts black and dark 
rusty or reddish brown, rarely with any gray ; tail usually deep rusty, 
rarely grayish; under parts heavily marked with blackish and washed 
with buffy brown. 
Distribution. — Resident in humid Transition and Canadian zones in 
coast ranges from British Columbia south to Humboldt County, Cali¬ 
fornia. 
Nest. — As described by Bendire, a hollow under fallen branches lined 
with dead leaves, spruce needles, and a few feathers. Eggs: 7 to 13. 
Food. — Similar to that of other grouse. 
GENUS LAGOPUS. 
General Characters. — Toes and tarsus densely feathered, tail less than 
two thirds as long as wing, with long coverts reaching to tip. 
Fig. 202. 
