Vadim Gorbatov's art Gallery
at Eaglehunter.co.uk
at Eaglehunter.co.uk
Capercallies
The largest of the Grouse family these birds like the open old forest habitat, the large straight branches for roosting and the space between trees for flight. The Russian name for Capercallie is "gluhar" which means "deaf", this is because during the second part of its mating song he becomes absolutly deaf. During those several seconds a hunter can shoot and if he misses the cock will not fly away, because capercaillie does not hear the shot. The males strut about with their tails fanned out, and wings held down, while producing an extraordinary sequence of noises including some that sound like strangled gurgles and asthmatic wheezes. Interspersed with these are popping noises like corks being drawn from champagne bottles. Some experts believe that some of these sounds, below the range of human ears, carry for many miles and declare to any female capercaillie that the male making the noise is in his prime.