Dusky Grouse Identification

The Four Keys to ID

• Size & Shape

  A heavyset chickenlike bird with a short bill, short, strong legs, and a medium-length tail that can be fanned into a semicircle.

  Relative Size

  Larger than a Spruce Grouse, smaller than a Wild Turkey.

  between crow and goose

  Measurements

  • Both Sexes
  • • Length: 17.3-22.4 in (44-57 cm)
    • Weight: 40.9-45.2 oz (1158-1281 g)
    • Wingspan: 25.6-26.4 in (65-67 cm)

  © Jackson Trappett / Macaulay Library

• Color Pattern

  Both male and female are mottled in camouflage patterns of brown, gray, white, and black. Males have dark gray tails and blue-gray underparts. In display, males reveal purplish-red air sacs on the neck, and their eye combs swell and become a rich yellow or red.

• Behavior

  Dusky Grouse spend much of the day resting and feeding. They forage on the ground for plants and insects, as well as in trees where they take leaves, needles, and buds, especially in winter. Males display in early spring from perches in trees or near the ground, making short flights and performing strutting displays on the ground.
• Habitat

  Montane forests (hemlock, ponderosa pine, fir, Douglas-fir) and adjacent open areas of bunchgrass, sagebrush, and subalpine habitats.