been killed very recently, and I have observed within the
last three years, that a considerable portion of the birds I
have examined bore no marks of having been shot, and have
probably been caught by sliding loops of horse hair set up
across their paths or runs in the heather* f*
I t has been observed that it seems almost marvellous that
a species which furnishes| sport' to so many, and to such an
extent, besides those taken clandestinely, should continue to
exist in such quantities in the country. The Earl of Strathmore’s
gamekeeper was matched for a considerable sum ,to
shoot forty brace of moor game in the course of . the 12th of
August,' upon his iordship’s moars Iin Yorkshire?; he perform-
ed it with great ease, shooting forty*tfeee brace by^two
o’clock: at eight in? the'morning,""owing to a thick-fog, he
had only killed three birds,' and the odds ran much against
him ; however, the day cleared up by eleven, and the work of
slaughter went on rapidly.
In 1801, a gentleman in Inverness-shire, shot fifty-two
brace of moor-game in one day, never killing a bird sitting,
or more than one bird at one shot. At the first of the. sear-
son the young birds, lie elose, particularly where the r heath is
high and strong, affording excellent sport after. a ''favourable
breeding ?sea£on,. and the newspapers frequently] record the
great numbers killed by parties that are favourably located;
but as the season advances, the birds get strong, and from
being disturbed, become wild, and th e . families uniting “to
form packs, are then very rdifficultio. get shots at.
Among the?quantities of Red Grouse receiveddn London^
considerable differences ;in‘ the colour ,of the plumage are
obvious, and a ; differ eneeuaTsa in weight.is considered to foe
peculiar to the birds of particular districts.
The Red Grouse, of -North Wales ; are - said tolhe? large- in
size, and light in colour: those of the Western Highlands are
also light in colour, and are said to be earlier breeders than
those of the eastern parts of Scotland, which are, however, of
large«size,' and dark in colour. I have; been favoured with
the e weight of four male and two female Red Grouse from
Morayslirè, h o t selected bëcause considered as particularly
large, but it happens to be a practice with the keeper. The
four males weighed respectively .24f ounces, ounces, 24 ^
ounces, and 24 ounces, thus. Averaging 24 £ ounces. Of the
two' females,' (5nie weighed 24:| ouribesjthe other 23^ ounces;
and in this 'locality the birds' are very dark in colour.
In further ? reference *to 1 colour, Mr. Selby, residing in
Northumberland, observes, rthat “ varieties of* a cream colour,
o r with "different' decrees" of white,'are often, met.with ; and
there has fof many years existed eh the möors of Blanchlahd,’
in the; county of Durham, a cream coloured, or light grey
variety, ^spotted more or desk with' dark ibidvm’ and black ;
but from the anxiety off sportsmen to procuré: specimens, these
birds’have not been allowed to increase^ as .they otherwise, in
all probability, woiild have; doneJ*
The Réd GrMse> óï Yorkshire are said toeber the smallest
in- size ; arid this differenceiis .most observable when the: birds
are picked and trussed for roasting:; yet Daniel,- in bis Rural
Sports,' records one that was klidd; Sear - Richmond ; iff Yorkshire,
which weighed iw.enty-five óiiricesr; arid Pennant, in a
note, in edi ti ons that he had heard of one killed in Yorkshire
which weighed twenty-nine ounces-/?'
The Red Grouse is found in Lancashire and Derbyshire,
and as far south as the' Héatks. óf Staffordshire. Montagu
mentiops one instance m of this bird’being found a t a distance
from the moors. This was a female, ‘taken alive néar Wed-
hamptori in Wiltshire,' in? the wiriterr.of 1794; thé occurrence
was communicated 'to :him. by.r Edward Pobre, Esq. who
sljovied. him part of. the bird/ By:v^ajbunaecountablè acci*
dentv’. Montagu observesj^it should have been driventoso.
great a distance from its native O moors .is difficult to bet