Members of the Wind River Reservation in Wyoming perform their chicken dance to honor grouse.

Historical and Cultural Significance

For thousands of years, the Plains Indian tribes lived among sage grouse, hunting them for food and mimicking the male displays in ceremonial dances.

The Lewis and Clark Expedition in 1805 provided the first written account of sage grouse. Meriwether Lewis spotted the bird on the mouth of the Marias River on June 6, 1805, and later wrote:

“The Heath Cock or cock of the Plains is found in the Plains of the Columbia and are in great abundance from the enterance of Lewis’s river to the mountains which pass the Columbia between the Great falls and Rapids of that river.”

Today, some hunters still pursue sage grouse where numbers are high enough. It’s a legacy they hope to pass on to their children, too. As Montana hunter Brandon Moss wrote in the Montana Sporting Journal:

“Still to this day, my heart skips a beat as a seven-pound bird erupts in front of me, just after walking through a brace of hunting dogs only to watch the rhythmic beat of their wings set sail over the horizon.”

Characteristics

The largest of all grouse in North America, sage grouse males are nearly twice the size and weight of females. Both sexes have small heads and long tails with black bellies and clean white underwings, easily spotted in flight. Note, the female has a mottled breast and neck, while the males sport a white breast and white neck feathers above a black neck ring.

Both sexes have blackish bellies which contrast sharply with white under-wing coverts when the birds are in flight. Females appear to dip from side to side while flying. Greater sage-grouse adult males range from 26 to 30 inches in length and average 4 to 7 pounds in weight; adult females range from 19 to 23 inches in length and 2.5 to 3.5 pounds in weight. Gunnison sage-grouse are approximately two-thirds the size of greater sage-grouse.

Flying Power

Despite their heavy bodies, sage grouse are strong fliers with recorded speeds up to 78 km/ hour (almost 50 mph) and single flights of up to 10 km (six miles).  However, sage grouse often prefer to walk. Running is difficult on their short legs. Hiding or flying are their best responses to threats.

A Bird By Many Names

When you hear the term “sage grouse,” it’s usually in reference to the greater sage-grouse. Other common names you might hear for this bird include: sagehen (mascot of Pomona College and Pitzer College in California), sage cock, or sage chicken. Ironically, Lewis and Clark’s own nicknames -– cock of the plains or heath cock — failed to stick.

Two Species

Sage grouse are divided into two separate species: Greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) and Gunnison sage-grouse (Centrocercus minimus).

The greater sage-grouse species also includes the Bi-State sage grouse, a geographically distinct sub-population that lives along the California/Nevada border. Click here to learn more about Bi-State sage-grouse.

The Gunnison sage-grouse is smaller, and characterized by a different genetic makeup, tail feather pattern, and mating call. They inhabit sagebrush hills up to about 9,500 feet in elevation. Mostly, this species resides in the Gunnison Basin of Colorado, as their name attests, though small populations exist in other areas of Colorado and Utah. Click here to learn more about Gunnison sage-grouse.

 Meet the Family

Sage grouse are part of the family called Phasianidae. They are closely related to other species of grouse, as well as prairie chickens, wild turkeys, pheasants, partridges, and old world quail. Blue grouse, spruce grouse, and ruffed grouse all inhabit forest habitat, while sharp-tailed grouse and lesser prairie-chickens live in open country, like sage grouse. Here’s a little more about sage grouse’s closest relatives:

Lesser prairie-chicken

Like the sage grouse, lesser prairie-chickens rely on large prairie and steppe landscapes shared by agricultural producers, primarily ranching operations. At one time they inhabited vast ranges, but their wild prairie habitat has dwindled by 85 percent.

The lesser prairie-chicken today inhabits limited areas in five states of the southern Great Plains: Colorado, Kansas, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas. The species is listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act.

Learn more about the NRCS Lesser Prairie-Chicken Initiative

Listen to the lesser prairie-chicken

Sharp-tailed grouse

Sharp-tailed grouse overlap with sage grouse in their range, but can use more habitats, especially steep canyons and mountainous country that the sage grouse avoid. Their populations are stable. Males dancing on the lek are spectacular, and provide the inspiration for Native American dances across the nation.

Listen to the sharp-tailed grouse

Watch a video of their fancy-footwork dancing

Wildlife Viewing – How To Watch Respectfully

Across the west, you’ll find several opportunities to watch the amazing spring dance of sage grouse. We encourage you to get out there and see the dawn event for yourself, but encourage respectful viewing as these birds are extremely sensitive to disturbance.

Going to a lek with a guide or on a tour helps minimize any disturbance to the mating birds. If you’re in a blind, for example, you must arrive in the dark before the birds congregate, stay silent, and leave after the birds leave. We recommend these options for viewing sage grouse: Dubois Grouse Days in Idaho; watchable wildlife sites in Colorado identified by Sisk-a-dee, or leks listed in this Wyoming Fish and Game guide.

Tips for Ethical Viewing of Sage Grouse

•  Arrive at the lek at least one hour before sunrise.
•  Don’t drive on or near the lek and park away from the edge of the lek.
•  Turn off the engine and lights and stay in your vehicle.
•  Use binoculars and spotting scopes to observe birds.
•  Don’t make loud noises or sudden movements.
•  Do not leave the lek site until the birds do.
•  Keep your pets in the vehicle or, better yet, leave them at home.
•  Do not trespass on private land.
•  Postpone your visit if roads are muddy.
•  Late April is the best time to visit leks since most breeding is complete but the males are still actively strutting.

 A Wide Open Sagebrush Range

Today, sage grouse inhabit the sage steppe ecosystem that covers 186 million acres in parts of Washington, Oregon, California, Nevada, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, Utah, South Dakota, and North Dakota, as well as the Canadian provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan.

However, three-quarters of the birds inhabit just 27 percent of the range. That’s why the Sage Grouse Initiative emphasizes restoring habitat in the core areas where breeding populations are highest and conservation practices benefits the largest number of birds.

Historically, sage grouse ranged over 15 western states and 3 Canadian provinces. The birds have been extirpated from Arizona, New Mexico, Nebraska, and British Columbia. These birds declined as their habitat dwindled from crop cultivation, expanding conifers, and other habitat alterations.

Sagebrush Leaves – A Staple On The Menu

The staple of a sage grouse diet year-round is sagebrush leaves. Since sage grouse don’t have stones in their gizzards like many birds do (which helps grind seeds or nuts), they rely on soft foods like leaves.

Not all sagebrush is equal in terms of nutrients — low sagebrush (A. arbuscula) and black sagebrush (A. nova) are higher quality forage than big sagebrush species. Each bird has a slightly different diet based on locally available plants. In fact, recent genetics research by SGI shows that subpopulations of sage grouse prefer different plant species.

During the lush spring and summer months, the birds augment their diet with buds, flowers, fruits, and insects. In addition to different diets based on the season, sage grouse also require different types of food during different stages of life, from chick to adult.

Learn more about what they eat during different life stages by clicking through the seasonal calendar below.

Why Some Sage Grouse Migrate

Some sage grouse may be residents throughout the year, when they find favorable conditions. Other birds fly between winter, nesting, and summer areas. With their heavy bodies, sage grouse tend to hopscotch across the landscape — flying then landing then flying again — or sometimes even just walk along.

Factors affecting whether birds migrate include gender, behavior, seasonal habitat quality, and the weather. In a mild winter, sage grouse may choose to fly to their nesting grounds earlier than a harsh winter. Or if snow comes early in the fall, sage grouse move more quickly to wintering grounds.

The longest known sage grouse migration is 100 miles one way, from the Saskatchewan in Canada to central Montana. These birds fly south to escape from deep snow and to find more accessible sagebrush that provides them food and cover.

Day to Day Behavior

Most of the year, sage grouse are social birds that are found in flocks. In addition to nipping off sagebrush leaves to munch, the birds spend time preening, head-scratching, stretching, dust-bathing, or escaping predators.

Sage grouse are tasty targets for predators since they aren’t the fastest species. From the air, the greatest threats are golden eagles, along with red-tailed hawks and ferruginous hawks. That’s why grouse carefully avoid trees or other tall structures that offer raptor perches.  From the ground, the birds have to watch for coyotes, foxes, and bobcats. Even more predators are attracted to sage grouse nests, including badgers, weasels, ravens, crows, magpies, and snakes.

To escape predators, sage grouse crouch low to the ground, blend in with their surroundings, or hide under shrubs. They may fly away, as well. A hen roosting on a nest will attack small animals to defend her eggs and chicks. She may also drag her wings to look injured in order to draw a predator away from the nest.