The Collaborative International Dictionary
Ruffed \Ruffed\, a. Furnished with a ruff.
Ruffed grouse (Zo["o]l.), a North American grouse ( Bonasa umbellus) common in the wooded districts of the Northern United States. The male has a ruff of brown or black feathers on each side of the neck, and is noted for the loud drumming sound he makes during the breeding season. Called also tippet grouse, partridge, birch partridge, pheasant, drummer, and white-flesher.
ruffed lemur (Zo["o]l.), a species of lemur ( lemur varius) having a conspicuous ruff on the sides of the head. Its color is varied with black and white. Called also ruffed maucaco.
Wiktionary
n. An American game bird, ''Bonasa umbellus''; the male makes drumming sounds with its wings
WordNet
n. valued as a game bird in eastern United States and Canada [syn: partridge, Bonasa umbellus]
Wikipedia
The ruffed grouse (Bonasa umbellus) is a medium-sized grouse occurring in forests from the Appalachian Mountains across Canada to Alaska. It is non-migratory. It is the only species in the genus Bonasa.
The ruffed grouse is sometimes incorrectly referred to as a " partridge", an unrelated phasianid, and occasionally confused with the grey partridge, a bird of open areas rather than woodlands.
The ruffed grouse is the state bird of Pennsylvania, United States.
Usage examples of "ruffed grouse".
Perhaps I thought, it had been used for centuries as a sanctuary for ruffed grouse, or possibly by quail, although there were no longer very many quail.
The number had no meaning for him until he first heard the impossible chattering howl of little bells ripping across space at that speed, and first saw a ruffed grouse apparently explode on impact, like a snowball.
It is an 800-page study of the ruffed grouse, a bird so stupid you can blow out the brains of one without disturbing the one next to it.
That, or the sudden explosion of wings as a ruffed grouse went rocketing like a twilight ghost through the tangle of the tree trunks.
Without the forest foods of ruffed grouse, turkeys, raccoons, and wood rats, the eastern coyote almost died out.
There had been squirrels and rabbits for the pot and, if one could move silently enough and shoot an arrow well enough, ruffed grouse and perhaps even quail, although quail were small and quick and tiny targets for a bow.