Dusky Grouse - Grouse Hunting - Upland Hunting

View Recipes | Gamebird Services | Gamebird Hunts | View Photos

Dusky Grouse

 

Description

Dusky grouse is a native to the Rocky Mountains in N. America. Both the male and female are mottled in camouflaging white, gray, black, and brown patterns. While the males have dark gray tails with blue-gray underpants, females are mottled brown with dark brown & white marks on their underpants. Ideally, dusky grouse are chickenlike birds with short, strong legs, a short bill, and a medium length tail that can be fanned into a semi-circle. An adult dusky grouse is approximately 44 to 57 cm long, weighs 1,158 – 1,281 g, and has a 65 – 67 cm wingspan.

Habitat
Dusky grouse prefer living in deciduous and mixed forests during summer, but they thrive in conifer forests at higher elevations in winter. Montane forests with fir, Douglas-fir, hemlock, and ponderosa pine are ideal habitats. However, these game birds also live in adjacent open areas of sagebrush, bunchgrass, and subalpine habitats.

Diet
Although leaves, insects, and conifer needles constitute the main diet, in summer, dusky grouse feeds on buds, berries, flowers, leaves, and conifer needles. Young birds mostly feed on insects, especially ants, grasshoppers, and beetles. During the winter season, dusky grouse feeds mainly on conifers, including firs, hemlock, Douglas-fir, and pines. In summer, these birds forage on the ground, but they prefer foraging in trees in winter.

Nesting
The nest site is on the ground under a log, shrub, or rock ledge. Typically, the nest is a shallow scrape lined with needles, dead twigs, leaves, and a few feathers. During the breeding season, males give deep songs punctuated with short flights. They flutter their wings loudly, strut on the ground with their tail raised and fanned. Their neck feathers spread, revealing patches of bright skin. Females leave the male territory immediately after mating to build a nest.

Eggs
Female dusky grouse lay 5 to 10 pale buff eggs that have brown specks. Females do incubation for 25 to 28 days. After hatching, the young leave the nest immediately, looking for food and water. Females are usually fearless when protecting their eggs or young ones. After 8 to 9 days, the young can start making short flights. However, they are full-grown at about 13 weeks.


Buy Gamebirds


Gamebird Hunts

GUNDOG CENTRAL

ADAMSVILLE, TN

Breeds : English Pointer, German Shorthaired Pointer, Labrador Retriever, Wirehaired Pointing Griffon
Servies : Boarding, Gamebirds, Guided Hunts, Hunting Preserves, Kennel / Breeder, Trainer
Gamebirds : Chukar, Northern Bobwhite Quail, Ring necked pheasant

[ Details ]