Sharp-tailed Grouse (Tympanuchus phasianellus)

Sharp-tailed Grouse on a Lek

April 23, 2022 During spring at Lostwood National Wildlife Refuge in North Dakota, male Sharp-tailed Grouse - like the one pictured here - perform their elaborate mating dances on a matted patch of ground called a lek. They stomp their feet, extend their wings, and zip around the lek. Then, in an instant

Earth Day - Birds on the Brink

April 22, 2021 This Earth Day, we invite you to join us and help Bring Birds Back. You could help preserve the wetlands to protect the American Bittern and its otherworldly song, or keep the Sharp-tailed Grouse with us. Learn more ways you can help from our conservation partners. And find out what Earth

A Baker and Farmer Help Sharp-tailed Grouse

May 7, 2011 A determined dry-land wheat farmer and a visionary baker are trying to help a bird in trouble, the Sharp-tailed Grouse. The farmer, Wade Troutman, leaves 30% of the land he farms in its natural condition. The undisturbed patches of sagebrush habitat provide cover and food for grouse and

Sharp-tailed Grouse Dance

April 16, 2011 Dawn breaks over grassland in the northern Midwest and a dozen male Sharp-tailed Grouse, gathered closely together, face one another in a rough circle. Suddenly, as if in response to a movie director's call for "Action!" the grouse snap into a dance posture. Each bows, holds his wings

Wade Troutman and the Sharp-tailed Grouse

November 2, 2010 Eastern Washington wheat farmer, Wade Troutman (left), actively manages his farm to protect habitat for the Sharp-tailed Grouse. Jeff Weissman (right) buys Wade's wheat for his bakery in Seattle. Learn more about IRIS, Initiative for Rural Innovation and Stewardship. Gathering Our Voice