Edward Howe Forbush

“ Bob White is a brisk, enterprising little fellow with a heart full of hope, as his cheery greeting will tell you. He has been subjected to much discussion. “Bob White is quail,” say some; others insist that there are no quail in America and that Bob White is partridge. An acknowledged authority states that Bob White is called quail in the North and East, while in the South and West he is partridge. Wherever the ruffed grouse is called pheasant Bob White is called partridge; where the grouse is known as partridge Bob White is called quail. ”

“ The goose normally mates for life, and as its life is reckoned to last about one hundred years the partnership, barring accidents, is a long one; but life is full of accidents. The goose does not reach maturity early, and therefore does not breed for the first few years. The gander is not such a goose as he looks; for in his constant watch over mate, nest, and young he shows both courage and sagacity. He defends his mate and brood to the utmost extremity. He is said to be a victor sometimes over the crafty fox, and he easily drives away the deer or elk when his young are in danger. ”

“ Still plentiful in spite of many thousand guns aimed at its life, the grouse ranges over the whole of northern North America, making short migrations in search of food or winter quarters. Sometimes when wintering in tall timber it eats great quantities of laurel buds; which, gunners say, makes the flesh highly poisonous for food. The survival of this game bird in such great numbers is due in a large measure to the whir of its flight, which serves a double purpose, startling the gunner and warning all other birds in the neighborhood. Some sportsmen never become accustomed to the sound ”

“ The pursuit of Bob White is a blessed boon to many jaded and brain-wearied business and professional men. Some believe that they have lengthened their lives by trying to shorten his. How the bird has survived with so many “friends” thirsting for his blood is hard to tell; but for all his trustfulness he is not so easily taken. Many gunners have believed that he can sometimes fool the best dog by “holding his scent.” ”

“ They stretch their long necks here and there over the leaves, picking up acorns and chestnuts, when suddenly one finds a grain of corn, and another, and another, leading off in a straight line. Away go the turkeys scrambling over one another, and the greedy gobbler makes sure of his share. ”

“ He lives more in the open than the ruffed grouse, and by his admirers he is counted a finer game bird.
Bob White varies in color, in size, and in quality as a game bird in various sections of the United States, West Indies, Mexico, and Central America. As the ruffed grouse becomes less common and more difficult to get, on account of the disappearance of our forests, Bob White is assuming more and more the rank of the leading American game bird. For that reason the game law is strict, and sportsmen are much concerned in propagating the species. ”

“ Probably the little ones do not leave much scent; but the fox, raccoon, mink, weasel, dog, and cat may cross their trail at any moment, crows, owls, and hawks menace them; yet commonly about half of them escape all danger and grow and thrive while the summer waxes and wanes. They learn to fly by the end of the first week. Before they are half grown they leave the ground at night, and roost with the mother in the trees. ”

“ A favorite drumming log and trysting place.
What keeps the eggs from harm for weeks in the open woods? The grouse often brings off her young safely not far from the home of hawk, crow, or fox. Does the mother bird leave no scent by which her many four-footed enemies can find her? In one case, at least, well trained pointer and setter dogs could not find the bird on the nest, even after she had walked away and returned to it. Sometimes a dog or a fox blunders on the nest, and then the mother, every feather on end, flies at him in an attempt to drive him away ”

“ A little dry grass is usually collected, and on it the eggs, from nine to eleven in number, are laid. As soon as incubation begins the mother starts in to divest herself of the down that grows thickly beneath her breast feathers, and adds it to the nest furniture; so that the eggs are deeply imbedded in this heat-retaining substance—a portion of which she is always careful to pull, as a coverlet, over her treasures when she leaves them for food. ”

“ The Mentor is really a triumph of high class work and popular treatment. I believe that the very best things can be given to people in the very best way, not by writing down, but simply by using standard language instead of technical language. ”

“ He finds that there are four dark walls surrounding his flock, and overhead are logs with space enough between to let in the light, but not to let out the turkeys. They walk around craning their necks up at the light; for they have bad memories, and depend on sharp eyesight to get them out of trouble. The trench goes down under the log, and therefore no light comes through it—a circumstance that the turkey does not think about. So the poor gobbler and all his flock stay in the trap, because they do not know enough to go out the opening they came in by. ”

“ He is the farmer’s friend. Almost every insect pest of the garden and field is grist for his mill. All spring and summer he slays his thousands and tens of thousands, and in the fall he fattens up on millions of weed seeds. Yes, grain too; but only the waste grain left in the stubble. That is about all the grain he takes—and, after all this, many farmers get the sportsman to pay off the taxes on their farms for the privilege of shooting their little friend! Thus the school taxes are paid, and Bob White settles for the education of the children. ”

“ For example, the robust, hardy, and large-sized Bob White that was known in the New England States in past years is now extinct, and it has been replaced by a somewhat less sturdy type of bird introduced from Kansas and the Carolinas. These birds, not accustomed to the rigorous winter of the northern states, have a hard time when the weather is bitterly cold. In a severe winter in New England poor little “planted” Bob White is, in the most pathetic sense of the phrase of the day, “up against it.” He has to be sheltered and fed largely by his human friends. ”

“ This turkey was domesticated by the Aztecs, and hundreds of thousands were bred by them in domestication long before America was discovered by Columbus. Europeans received the bird from the hands of the Indians. The white man never has succeeded in domesticating any American game bird sufficiently to bring it into general use. The task still lies before us. The American Ornithologists’ Union now recognizes but one species and five subspecies of the wild turkey, all of which are natives of this continent. ”

“ Sometimes a prowling cat catches the mother on her eggs at night, and that ends the family history; but in the majority of cases the eggs safely hatch.
The little ones all come from the shell together, and are fully equipped to find their own living. They need the mother only as guard, defender, and shelter. When they pop out of the eggs they leave the nest forever, and thenceforth they are at home in Robin Hood’s barn, and sleep wherever weariness or night overtakes them. ”

“ The Canada goose winters in Texas, along the Gulf of Mexico, and in the sounds and bays of Virginia and the Carolinas, and goes north early in the spring. In the summer it inhabits the far North, from Labrador and the Saskatchewan regions north to the Arctic Ocean. In August, like many of the ducks, these birds molt the entire wing, and at that season their chief enemies are the Indians and Eskimos, who catch them in great numbers.
However, for eating the gander is not very good. His flesh is strong, tough, and unpleasant. The females and tender goslings are far more highly prized as food. ”

“ Wild birds are now rare. In the southern Adirondacks and even parts of the West, where there are still enough to tempt the hunter, they furnish excellent sport; for the old gobbler is a wise bird when traps are forbidden. The usual method of hunting is by tracks in the snow,—a difficult sport, requiring especial skill; for the turkey flies long distances if pursued. In the West it has been hunted on horseback with greyhound.
PREPARED BY THE EDITORIAL STAFF OF THE MENTOR ASSOCIATION
ILLUSTRATION FOR THE MENTOR, VOL. 1, No. ”

“ The train of corn leads along through dense underbrush, turns sharp to the left and under an old log. Without noticing what is beyond, the turkeys go down through a trench, their heads to the ground, and come up on the other side of the log, where there is more grain spread all round. ”

“ We offer a membership in an Association that brings many advantages. There is a saying, “It is a good thing to be doing a good thing, and it is a good thing to know that you are.” We know that The Mentor is a good thing, and it is a good thing to be told so by so many. ”

“ When advancing winter seals the waters of their northern home, the geese gather in flocks, rise in air, and turn their faces to the south. They travel by well known landmarks, and unlike many sea fowl often become confused in a fog. ”

“ In the North this grouse is known as the partridge; Southerners recognize it as the pheasant; but how few of us know more about it! How few realize that it flies quietly when undisturbed, or that it has a variety of notes, ranging from the soft, cooing mother’s call to the harsh scream or squeal with which she hurls herself at some enemy of her brood. Many have heard the drumming of the male, “Thump—thump—thump—thump, thump ”

“ But if they are not able to get this food they taste very little better than the poorer species, and are far inferior to such river ducks as the mallard, the dusky duck, gadwall, teal, or pintail.
Canvasbacks closely resemble redheads in general appearance. But the long, straight black bill and darker forehead are characteristic of the canvasback alone. The redhead has a moderately short bluish gray bill and a uniform light chestnut fluffy head.
Often redheads are substituted for canvasbacks upon the unknowing purchaser. On the same feeding grounds one is about as good as the other. ”

“ And we all know what he calls himself whenever he has his little say—and what he says of himself is gladly accepted everywhere. Bob White is a popular favorite among game birds on account of his attractive habits and the fact that he is to be found in almost all sections of the country—and wherever found he displays the qualities that make good hunting. ”

“ Unless the hunter has much experience or exceptional advantages, he will find them very hard to get. The number of birds that still survive testify to the wariness, the keenness of vision, and the good judgment of this much prized bird. ”

“ Every sense is alert. He is ready for an instant spring at the slightest movement or sound. Canvasbacks are expert divers. If only wounded they are hard to retrieve. They will dive and swim long distances under the surface, coming up in the rushes and cattails at the edge of the water. There it is almost hopeless to try to recover them.
These ducks are swift flying and strong. Their average length is about twenty-two inches. The males look very white when on the wing. The females have much the appearance of redheads. ”

“ However, the mother rarely leaves the nest during the hatching period. When all the eggs are hatched the brood is led carefully to water, and throughout the summer the mother watches over the chicks until they are full grown and feathered. ”

“ Everybody who does not know them can have a good time studying them; for his life is open for all to see. What concerns us most is how we can make this useful, companionable friend to man more plentiful. ”

“ The great falling off in the number of these birds in recent times has been accentuated by the extinction of the passenger pigeon and the Eskimo curlew, and the rapid disappearance of many others, among which are the whooping crane and the sandhill crane, great birds that are gradually being swept from the continent. ”

“ The canvasback comes nicely to decoys usually, particularly if live dusky ducks are used. But they become very cautious if they are much hunted, especially in the North, where they go generally in pairs or small companies. ”

“ They have grown horny processes on both sides of the toes which will help to support their weight on packed snow or thin crust, and they are perfectly at home on or under the snow. If a crust freezes over them, they make their way beneath it, feeding on twigs and ground vegetation until they can break out. ”