Greater Sage-Grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) are North America’s largest grouse. Historically Sage-Grouse inhabited three Canadian provinces (Alberta, Saskatchewan, and British Columbia) and 14 American states (Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming), but presently occur only in southeastern Alberta, southwestern Saskatchewan, and 11 U.S. states (Sage-Grouse no longer occur in Arizona, Nebraska, New Mexico, and British Columbia). They are endangered in Canada and have declined by greater than 50% across their range due to the widespread destruction of sagebrush.

Map of the Current Sage-Grouse range in North America - Modified from Schroeder et al. 2004.

Sage-Grouse are sagebrush obligates meaning that they live in habitats dominated by big or silver sagebrush and eat primarily sagebrush during parts of the year. They also eat forbs (small tender plants/weeds), insects, and berries. Sage-Grouse are a lekking species of galliform where males congregate on communal display grounds (leks) in the spring and females make repeated, lengthy visits to choose a male before they mate and raise chicks on their own

Sage-Grouse Chick in Southeastern Alberta

Males can be up to twice as large as females and have long pointed tails, elaborate filoplumes, white breasts, and two large yellowish air sacs that are visible on the lower neck/upper breast during display. These air sacs produce both a visual and audio effect (a loud 2-toned "plop" sound). This sound combined with a wing swish noise that they make while displaying, most closely resembles a little kid running around in snow pants or corduroys and a dripping faucet. Male Sage-Grouse attend leks for up to three months each spring (usually mid-March to mid-May), generally arrive on leks prior to sunrise, and display for up to four hours each morning. Displaying is thought to both attract females and to defend territories from other males.

Sage-Grouse Male Displaying in Southeastern Alberta

Females are cryptic with their plumage (feather pattern) blending into the sagebrush habitat allowing for them to hide while nesting.  Females generally nest near the lek, lay between 4-12 eggs., and incubation is 27 days. The Chicks are precocial (fully feathered, sighted, and capable of walking within a short time after hatching), leave the nest soon after hatching, are capable of weak flight at 10 days of age, and fledge (are independent of the mother) at 10-12 weeks of age.

Female Sage-Grouse in Southeastern Alberta

Current and past threats to Sage-Grouse are habitat destruction (conversion of native sage steppe to agriculture), habitat fragmentation (small scale habitat conversion, roads/fences/power lines, and oil and gas development), habitat degradation (over grazing and invasive and non-native plant species encroachment), disease (West Nile virus), predation (coyotes, raptors, and badgers), and environmental conditions (global warming and extreme weather conditions). Sage-Grouse were petitioned to be an endangered species in the United States, but were given a warranted, but precluded listing in 2010 meaning that they have no governmental protection. In Canada, they are an endangered species, but increased fragmentation and frequent snow storms in the spring during the critical nesting time period have resulted in an estimated population of less than 100 individuals and a very bleak outlook for the future.

Oil Rig in Southeastern Alberta