Nature has been very kind to the Sooty Grouse in supplying protective coloration to the animal and has gone a step farther in making the bird very clever at concealing her nest, however, the nests nests are sometimes discovered. Just below the Community Building at Paradise a grouse hen had her home within a few inches of a well-traveled trail. People passed by it daily never suspecting a family was being reared under their feet. Unfortunately, one kind camper spied the nest and put out some bread crusts for the hen to feed on. This was unfortunate because the bread attracted the attention of many other animals and soon betrayed the hiding-place of the grouse. As Ranger Don Loerhke was passing by the nest he noticed a fluttering which at once drew his attention. Stoping to watch the performance he saw that the mother grouse was trying to decoy a bear away from the bread, fearing that he might spy her eggs in the nest. The bear greedily ate all the bread and then looked for more. The fluttering of the grouse was to no avail, as the bear saw the eggs and devoured them in a series gulps. The incident is particularly tragic because the kindness of the camper led indirectly to the destruction of the entire family of the Sooty Grouse.

-- Howard Coombs,
Ranger Naturalist.