174 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
[Aug. 4, 1906. 
ing he counted sixteen perched in a row on the 
top rail of a fence near the barnyard. It is un¬ 
usual to see so many together now. the num¬ 
ber in a covey rarely exceeding six or eight, 
but in former times packs containing from one 
to two hundred birds each were occasionally 
met with late in the autumn. 
“Only one person of the many whom I ques¬ 
tioned on the subject had ever seen a heath 
hen’s nest. It was in oak woods, among sprouts 
at the base of a large stump, and contained 
either twelve or thirteen eggs. The date, he 
thought, was about June 10. This seemed late, 
but I have a set of six eggs taken on the Vine¬ 
yard July 24. 1885, and on July 19, 1890. I met 
a blueberry picker who only the day before had 
started a brood of six young, less than half 
grown. These facts prove that this bird is 
habitually a late breeder. 
“The farmers about Tisbury say that in 
spring the male heath hen makes a booming 
or tooting noise. This, according to their de¬ 
scriptions, must resemble the love notes of the 
western pinnated grouse. About sunrise, on 
warm, ,still mornings in May, several birds may 
be sometimes heard at once, apparently answer¬ 
ing one another. 
“During my stay at Martha’s Vineyard, I ob¬ 
tained as many estimates as possible of the 
number of heath hens which are believed to 
exist there at the present time. My most trust¬ 
worthy informants were, creditably, averse to 
what was apparently mere idle guessing; but 
when I questioned them, first as to the extent 
of the region over which the birds ranged, and 
next as to how many on the average could be 
found in a square mile within this region, they 
answered readily enough, and even with some 
positiveness. As already stated, the total pres¬ 
ent range of the heath hen covers about forty 
square miles. The estimates of the average 
number of birds per mile varied from three to 
five, giving from 120 to 200 birds for the total 
number. These estimates, it should be stated, 
relate to the number of birds believed to have 
been left over from last winter. If these breed 
freely and at all successfully, there should be a 
total of fully 500, young and old together, at 
the beginning of the present autumn. When 
one considers the limited area to which these 
birds are confined, it is evident that within this 
area they must be reasonably abundant. I was 
assured that with the aid of a good dog it was 
not at all difficult to start twenty-five or thirty 
in a day, and on one occasion eight were 
killed by two guns. This, however, can be done 
only by those familiar with the country and 
the habits of the birds.” 
A recent inquiry made among game commis¬ 
sioners of States where prairie chickens were 
formerly very abundant, has brought out a num¬ 
ber of replies of great interest. But it is to be 
regretted that the game commissioners of Ohio 
and of Kentucky have not replied to the questions 
asked them about this bird. Mr. E. E. Earle, 
Chief Deputy Warden of the State of Indiana, 
writes us as follows: 
“Our supply of pinnated grouse decreased 
rapidly from year to year until 1901. Prior to 
that time the open season had run from Septem¬ 
ber 1 of any year to February 1 of the succeed¬ 
ing year. Under this law large numbers of these 
birds were slaughtered every year, they being 
young, not gun shy, and easily found. 
“In 1901 a law was passed prohibiting the kill¬ 
ing of pinnated grouse, or possession of same, 
at any time between January 1 and November 
10, and prohibiting export of such birds. Under 
the provisions of this act. which was rigorously 
enforced, pinnated grouse have increased in num¬ 
bers, and may be found in great droves on our 
prairies and marshes. 
“I was in Porter county last March, and one 
duck hunter told me of having seen in one flock 
what he estimated to have been one hundred 
prairie chickens, and such scenes are by no, means 
rare. Wise laws and strict enforcement of same 
will increase them in any country that is suit¬ 
able for their habitation.” 
Illinois, in the youth of men who are now 
elderly, was the great chicken ground of what 
used to be called the West, but the birds were so 
persecuted that a few years ago it was supposed 
that this grouse was nearly extinct there. With¬ 
in the last two or three years, however, a great 
change has taken place, for State Game Com¬ 
missioner, John A. Wheeler writes us as follows: 
“My deputy game wardens throughout the 
State report prairie chickens, pinnated grouse, 
rapidly increasing. Our deputy wardens in 
Wayne county report 3,000 birds in that county 
by actual count. In Sangamon county, from per¬ 
sonal observation and reports from the deputy 
wardens, 1 am convinced that we have nearly 
that many birds. From all over the State, we 
are receiving encouraging reports of the increase 
of prairie chickens. I will be able later to prob¬ 
ably give you a fair estimate of the number of 
birds in Illinois, but the report will only be an 
approximate estimate.” 
Almost the northwestern limit of the pinnated 
grouse’s range is western Minnesota, and of this 
country Mr. S. F. Fullerton, the Executive Agent 
of Minnesota’s Board of Game and Fish Com¬ 
missioners, writes us interestingly. It is obvious 
that unless the cultivation of the land is such as 
to provide food for the pinnated grouse they 
will not do well there, and the character of Min¬ 
nesota farming, which is largely dairying on 
small farms, is such as not to encourage oc¬ 
cupation by the pinnated grouse. We quote parts 
of two letters from Mr. Fullerton : 
“The pinnated grouse or prairie chicken is dis¬ 
appearing from a large section of our State. It 
cannot stand civilization, but it is very odd that 
in new portions of the State that have been 
opened up they are very plentiful, and we have 
sections in Minnesota where the pinnated grouse 
are just as thick as they ever were. 
"1 just had a talk with the State Game Warden 
of Manitoba, and he stated that ' their prairie 
chickens are not disappearing at all; in fact, they 
are increasing under rigid protection and stop¬ 
ping the sale. That is only across an imaginary 
line of Minnesota and Dakota, where these birds 
are plentiful, but in the southern part of our 
State, where dairying has taken the place of 
grain raising, there are hardly any of the birds 
left. The sharptail grouse, however, are differ¬ 
ent, as they are found in the brush country in 
great numbers where farms are opened up. They 
don't shy at civilization the same as the pinnated 
does, but they are a bird that we don’t think as 
much of, as they don't lay as good to a dog, and 
don't afford as good sport to the man with a 
gun. 
"A very pleasing thing happened to me last 
March. I was up in the northern part of the 
State, and in a drive of three hours I came across 
a stretch of land that had been cleared of jack 
pine. The clearing was several miles in extent, 
but it was surrounded by jack pine. The snow 
at the time was over two feet deep. The land 
last year was cultivated, some corn grown on it 
and some wheat and other coarse grain. In that 
clearing, the man I had with me and myself 
counted over two hundred pinnated grouse. They 
appeared to have wintered finely and seemed in 
good condition. It was very pleasing to me be¬ 
cause I am satisfied now we will have a good 
lot of old birds to begin the nesting season with 
in that part of the State.” 
When we reach Nebraska, we come to the 
limit of the pinnated grouse and enter the region 
of the sharptail just as we do in Minnesota. 
Both species were formerly abundant . in 
Nebraska, but were so overshot by thoughtless 
gunners and by market shooters that they be¬ 
came rare. Mr. G. L. Carter, Chief Warden of 
Nebraska’s Game and Fish Commission, writes 
us fully about birds in Nebraska, and we take 
pleasure in printing his letter almost in full. 
“We have both the pinnated and sharp-tailed 
grouse, and we are so proud of them, that it is 
a pleasure for me to tell you about them. To 
make myself more clearly understood, I have 
drawn an outline of our State, which I herewith 
inclose, in which I have marked off the sections 
inhabited by these splendid birds. 
“You will note by this diagram, that the pin¬ 
nated grouse are found more abundantly in the 
central and eastern parts of the State, while the 
sharptail grouse are found in the northwest por¬ 
tion. 
“A peculiar thing is, that we seldom find a 
sharp-tailed grouse south of the Platte River; 
when we do, it is late in the season. The breed¬ 
ing and rearing grounds are principally in the 
northern and western sections, but a few are 
raised in other parts of the State. 
"During the winter months, on account of 
scarcity of food in the north part of the State, 
which is principally grazing country, the birds 
are driven further south, usually along the Platte 
River valley, sometimes going as far south as 
the northern counties of Kansas. 
“A few days ago, while going from this city to 
Omaha, I saw a bunch of perhaps 100 pinnated 
grouse within eight miles of the Omaha city 
limits. It is only through our effective game 
laws, passed during the winter of 1901, that we 
have these birds to any extent. Prior to that 
time, they were being slaughtered by the market 
hunters from everywhere, and shipped to the 
market. We were able to convince the Legisla¬ 
ture of 1901, that there had been shipped out of 
this State 235,000 of these birds, during the year 
of 1900. We have had this shipping stopped, and 
as a result, ranchmen and farmers throughout: 
the State report birds more plentiful than any 
time during the past fifteen years. 
“If we take care of these birds, we will have 
them for a great many years to come, as we 
have boundless acres of territory which will never 
be cultivated, and which afford splendid breeding 
grounds for them. 
“Any thorough sportsman is welcome to 
Nebraska. All we ask of him, is to pay his non¬ 
resident license fee and obey our law strictly 
while here, but market hunters, will find an un¬ 
pleasant berth. During 1905, we issued 145 non¬ 
resident licenses in this State, of which forty- 
six were from Iowa, thirty-one from Illinois, 
seventeen from Colorado, six from Ohio, and the 
balance were scattered from Louisiana and 
Georgia on the south, to Michigan on the north, 
and Massachusetts and Connecticut on the east.” 
Missouri is also a State where there have in 
the past been many pinnated grouse, and from 
this State also we have a good report as to an 
abundant stock of birds which might easily 
enough be increased by proper care. State Game 
Warden J. H. Rodes’ account of things will be 
read with interest by all game protectors. 
"In twenty-five, if not more, of the 114 counties 
in this State, we have prairie chickens remaining 
in greater or less quantities. Originally, as you 
know, throughout the prairie districts of this 
State, these Jfirds abounded in very liberal sup ¬ 
plies, but having had absolutely no protection up 
to and prior to the enactment of the present 
game and fish laws which went into effect on 
June 15, 1905, they were industriously hunted 
almost to the point of extermination, and were 
wholly killed off in many counties where they 
had formerly been found abundant. 
“It was a common practice, nothwithstanding 
we had a statute prohibiting it, to begin shoot¬ 
ing these birds after July 1,.clear on and through 
the hunting season, when and whenever they 
could be found. Now that they are protected 
during the entire year, except from November 15 
to December 15. we hope they wall multiply and 
re-establish themselves in considerable number. 
To illustrate: This county, Pettis county, which 
is little larger, perhaps, than the average size 
county and fairly densely populated—Sedalia 
alone, the county seat, having a population of 
something over 15,000 inhabitants, and many 
more average sized towns—has yet remaining in 
it, I would say. five or six hundred birds. 
“Of course it is difficult to estimate even ap¬ 
proximately the number of birds remaining, yet 
it is no uncommon sight to see flocks of ten to 
twentyMive of these birds in the larger pastures 
and corn fields. A party who is a very reliable 
person, told me the other day that he saw in the 
western part of our county a drove of about 
forty birds. Doubtless this was an accumulation 
of, Several flocks that were feeding together. 
“While, as stated, this county is thickly popu¬ 
lated, there yet remain many large pastures on 
which the virgin sod has never been broken, 
being used as pasture lands and perhaps some as 
large as a thousand acres or more. They breed 
in these pastures and meadows and feed in ad¬ 
jacent oat and corn fields during the summer 
season. They were seen in unusually large 
