. New England bird life: being a manual of New England ornithology; . ater exactitude, perhaps, than that afforded by thedistribution of any other of our birds. The fine creatureresides in all theevergreen wood-ed, and especiallyin the swampy,parts of North-ern New England,and is not a migra-tory species. It issaid to be commonat Umbagog, inMaine, and to beordinarily limited southward by the White Mountain range. The few in-stances in which this Grouse has been shown to occurbeyond the region indicated must be regarded as irregu-lar, if not wholly accidental. Mr. Allen, very properly,it seems
. New England bird life: being a manual of New England ornithology; . ater exactitude, perhaps, than that afforded by thedistribution of any other of our birds. The fine creatureresides in all theevergreen wood-ed, and especiallyin the swampy,parts of North-ern New England,and is not a migra-tory species. It issaid to be commonat Umbagog, inMaine, and to beordinarily limited southward by the White Mountain range. The few in-stances in which this Grouse has been shown to occurbeyond the region indicated must be regarded as irregu-lar, if not wholly accidental. Mr. Allen, very properly,it seems to us, considers the two reported Massachusettscaptures as accidental. One of these was in the hem-lock woods of Gloucester, in September, 185 i ; the otherin Roxbury, about 1865 (Am. Nat., iii, 1870, p. 636;and Bull. Essex Inst., x, 1878, p. 22). Farther south,the Spruce Grouse is unknown, even as a straggler. Like others of its family, this Grouse nests on theground, usually in swampy, secluded localities. Theeggs are laid in the latter part of May, and young may. Fig. 32. - Head of Canada size. 150 : GROUSE. be found by the middle of June. When surprised withher brood, the parent bird is very courageous in theirdefence, even attacking the intruder who threatens thepeace. The nest is made of twigs, leaves, grasses, andmoss, and much art is often displayed to conceal eggs, to the number of a dozen or more, are lesselongate than those of some Grouse, broader at the butt,and more pointed at the other end ; thus approachingthe shape characteristic of Partridge eggs, and beinglike those of Ptarmigan in size and form. The follow-ing measurements of selected examples from a largeseries show the size, shape and range of variation : ; by ; by ; by in the oviduct the egg is creamy-white. Thiscolor is washed over to a varying degree of intensitywith rich chestnut-brown — generally a pale creamy brown — and
Size: 1998px × 1251px
Photo credit: © Reading Room 2020 / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1880, bookpublishern, booksubjectbirds
