Daniel, Wyoming 
                                             July 16, 1934 
 
Dr. Aldo Leopold 
In Charge, Game Research 
University of Wis. 
Madison, Wis. 
 
Dear Dr. Leopold: 
 
I am making a study of the sage chicken under the supervision of 
Dr. John W. Scott, Head of the Zoology Department of the University 
of Wyoming. I left the University about June 5 and will be in the 
field until about Sept. 1. 
 
I understand from Dr. Scott that you are interested in the sage 
chicken. After I had been in the field a week or so, I was able 
to make a tentative outline for my research work. I am sending you 
a copy. Do you have any suggestions to offer? I would certainly 
appreciate any suggestions. Do you have any particular matter 
concerning the sage chicken that you would like to have investigated? 
If so, I would be glad to do the best I could to discover the de- 
sired information. 
 
I am finding my work exceptionally interesting. Even though I have 
been closely associated with the sage chicken mearly all of my life, 
I found that I really knew very little about them. 
 
I have always been a great friend of the sage chicken and through 
my hunting them, I have noticed in the last two or three years that 
they have been rapidly disappearing from Idaho, Utah, and parts 
of Wyoming. Since my primary interests have always been animals 
and birds throughout my life, I have planned since graduation from 
the University of Wyoming in 1930 to take my advanced work in 
nature study and make it my life's work. 
 
I have been afraid that the sage chicken would be entirely extermin- 
ated as some of our other game birds have been. So I wrote to Dr. 
Scott and asked him if I could make the sage chicken the subject for 
my thesis and in this manner obtain some information concerning the 
sage chickens which might be used in connection with their preser- 
vation. Dr. Scott very favorablly answered my letter and tol.me 
he would be very glad to have me do as I suggested and that there 
had been a demand for such a study. 
 
I am located 23 miles north east of Daniel, Wyoming. The sage 
grouse are really very numerous here. However, the ranchers have 
told me that they are not nearly as thick as they used to be. 
 
I saw a mother sage hen attach a tom cat that had caught one of 
her young. The tom, cat was forced to drop the chick and defend 
himself. By the time that the cat had placed himself in fighting 
position, the old hen had deserted the scene of battle. However, 
she had saved her chick. For a minute or so after the battle, the 
cat was busy shaking the dust out of his eyes.