Ruffed grouse: Difference between revisions
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The Ruffed Grouse is the [[List of U.S. state birds|state bird]] of [[Pennsylvania]], [[USA]]. |
The Ruffed Grouse is the [[List of U.S. state birds|state bird]] of [[Pennsylvania]], [[USA]]. |
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==Description== |
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<gallery> |
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File:Ruffed Grouse (1).jpg|Grey morph |
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File:Grouse3DonLJohnson.jpg|Displaying male |
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File:41 Ruffed Grouse.jpg|Plate 41 of the [[Birds of America (book)|Birds of America]] by [[John James Audubon]], depicting the Ruffed Grouse |
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</gallery> |
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These chunky, medium-sized birds weigh from {{convert|450|-|750|g|lb|abbr=on}}, measure from {{convert|40|to|50|cm|in|abbr=on}} in length and span {{convert|50|-|64|cm|in|abbr=on}} across their short, strong wings.<ref>[http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Ruffed_Grouse/lifehistory Ruffed Grouse, Life History, All About Birds – Cornell Lab of Ornithology]. Allaboutbirds.org. Retrieved on 2013-03-10.</ref> Ruffed Grouse have two distinct [[morph (zoology)|morph]]s, grey and brown. In the grey morph, the head, neck and back are grey-brown; the breast is light with barring. There is much white on the underside and flanks, and overall the birds have a variegated appearance; the throat is often distinctly lighter. The tail is essentially the same brownish grey, with regular barring and a broad black band near the end ("subterminal"). Brown-morph birds have tails of the same color and pattern, but the rest of the plumage is much more brown, giving the appearance of a more uniform bird with less light plumage below and a conspicuously grey tail. There are all sorts of intergrades between the most typical morphs; warmer and more [[humid]] conditions favor browner birds in general. |
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The ruffs are on the sides of the neck in both genders. They also have a crest on top of their head, which sometimes lies flat. Both genders are similarly marked and sized, making them difficult to tell apart, even in hand. The female often has a broken subterminal tail band, while males tend to have unbroken tail bands, though the opposite of either can occur. Females may also do a display similar to the male. Another fairly accurate sign is that rump feathers with a single white dot indicate a female; rump feathers with more than one white dot indicate a male. |
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{{Listen |
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| filename = Bonasa-umbellus.20100830.ogg |
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| title = Sound of the Ruffed Grouse |
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| description = |
| description = |
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Revision as of 14:24, 2 October 2013
| Ruffed Grouse | |
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| Algonquin Provincial Park, Ontario | |
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| Genus: | Bonasa Stephens, 1819
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| Species: | B. umbellus
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| Binomial name | |
| Bonasa umbellus | |
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.
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.[2]
The Ruffed Grouse is the state bird of Pennsylvania, USA.
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Ecology
Like most grouse, they spend most of their time on the ground, mixed woodland rich in aspen seems to be particularly well-liked. These birds forage on the ground or in trees. They are omnivores, eating buds, leaves, berries, seeds, and insects. According to Nature writer Don L. Johnson:
"More than any other characteristic, it is the ruffed grouse's ability to thrive on a wide range of foods that has allowed it to adapt to such a wide and varied range of habitat on this continent. A complete menu of grouse fare might itself fill a book. One grouse crop yielded a live salamander in a salad of watercress. Another contained a small snake."[3]
Hunting
- "Hunting of the ruffed grouse is common in the northern and far western United States as well as Canada, Often done with shotguns. Dogs may also be used. Hunting of the ruffed grouse can be challenging. This is because the grouse spends most of its time in thick brush, aspen stands, and second growth pines. It is also very hard to detect a foraging grouse bobbing about in the thicket due to their camouflage. With adequate snow cover they will burrow under the snow. Like other forest creatures, the ruffed grouse will maintain trails through the underbrush and pines. These can often be found by looking for the feathers of the bird on the ground and on twigs at the edges of its trail. Hunting of the ruffed grouse requires a good ear and lots of stamina as you will be constantly walking and listening for them in the leaves." – Joseph B. Barney [citation needed]
Ruffed Grouse will frequently seek gravel and clover along road beds during early morning and late afternoon. These areas are good areas to walk during this time to flush birds. Also, grouse use sandy road beds to dust their feathers to rid themselves of skin pests. Dusting sites are visible as areas of disturbed soils with some signs of feathers. Birds will return to these spots during the late afternoon to bathe in dust and also socialize and mate. [citation needed]
The Ruffed Grouse population has a cycle, and follows the cycle no matter how much or how little hunting there is. The cycle has puzzled scientists for years, and is simply referred to as the "grouse cycle."[4]
Minnesota is the top Ruffed Grouse–producing state in the U.S.[5]
Behavior
The Ruffed Grouse differs from other grouse species in its courtship display. Unlike other grouse species, the Ruffed Grouse relies entirely on a non-vocal acoustic display, known as drumming. The drumming itself is a rapid, wing-beating display that creates a low frequency sound, starting slow and speeding up (thump...thump...thump..thump-thump-thump-thump). Even in thick woods this can be heard for a quarter mile or more (~1/2 km).
The Ruffed Grouse spends most of its time quietly on the ground, and when surprised, may explode into flight, beating their wings very loudly. In the winter, they will burrow into the snow for warmth, and may suddenly burst out of the snow when approached too closely.
See also
References
- ^ BirdLife International (2012). Bonasa umbellus. In: IUCN 2012. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2012.2.
- ^ Ruffed Grouse, Animal Diversity Web
- ^ Johnson, Don L. (1995): Grouse & Woodcock: A Gunner's Guide. Krause Publications. ISBN 0-87341-346-6, p. 37
- ^ "Ups and Downs in the Grouse Woods". Retrieved 9 December 2012.
- ^ Grouse hunting: Minnesota DNR. Dnr.state.mn.us. Retrieved on 2013-03-10.
Further reading
- Henninger, W.F. (1906). "A preliminary list of the birds of Seneca County, Ohio" (PDF). Wilson Bulletin. 18 (2): 47–60.
- Ohio Ornithological Society (2004): Annotated Ohio state checklist.
- State Symbols of Pennsylvania: State Bird, The Ruffed Grouse PDF fulltext
External links
- Video and photo of Ruffed Grouse on the Internet Bird Collection
- Ruffed Grouse, Cornell Lab of Ornithology
