Orion Magazine

Heathen

GROUSE IS A BIRD. To grouse is to shoot grouse. To grumble is to grouse. A grouse is a reason for grumbling. A grouse grouse is a very good grouse. Grouse are ground-bound Galliformes. Grouse have feathered nostrils and dance at leks., of the bill as a bill to preserve Indians and heathens. Booming Ben, the last heath hen, was last seen on his traditional lekking grounds. Male grouse exhibit two types of lekking, typical lekking and exploded lekking. Exploded lekking occurs in areas where females have few resources. Booming Ben, the last heath hen, went to his lek early in the breeding season to dance and boom for female heath hens. In a world without them, Booming Ben did not boom but stood silent among crows. Traditional human dancers still dance the grouse dance that living grouse still dance in leks. The prairie chicken dance is one of the oldest human dances, a pact between the Grouse Nation and the Blackfoot. Breechcloth, feathered bustles, head roaches, and round bells round out the regalia of those who dance the grouse dance. More than a million lesser prairie chickens danced in the southern Great Plains prior to European colonization. Today, their numbers are lesser and few. The prairie chicken taught their lek dance to the Blackfoot after a Blackfoot killed a male grouse during his mating dance. Dance this dance to honor us or we will come back and kill you, said the Grouse Nation. A grouse is a bird. A grouse grouse is a very good grouse. A grouse is a reason for grumbling. To grumble is to grouse. To grouse is to shoot grouse. A heath hen is a grouse. A heathen is a bird.

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