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Illustrator David Sibley and actor H. Jon Benjamin will face off in the bird illustration battle of the century during BirdNote's Year-end Celebration and Auction!
Sharp-tailed Grouse lek
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Sparky Stensaas
Every April, the lengthening days triggers something in the brains of male Sharp-tailed Grouse causing them to start dancing...They return to their leks—a term for the dancing grounds of grouse species. With hormones raging, they do their best and most dramatic display for the females lurking around the edges, pretending not to watch. Males fight other males in dramatic flurries, but more often than not, confrontation ends in "Mexican standoffs," birds just facing off and staring at one another until one splits.