Ruffed Grouse Similar Species Comparison
Main SpeciesRuffed Grouse
Adult
Medium-sized game bird with short crest. A well-camouflaged bird with intricately barred and spotted plumage. Individuals can be grayish brown overall, reddish brown, or an intermediate tawny brown.
© Alix d'Entremont / Macaulay LibraryNova Scotia, April 06, 2013Display
Medium-sized game bird with extravagant display, including erecting long neck feathers to create a black "ruff" and fanning the tail, exposing a dark band near the tip.
© Lucas Bobay / Macaulay LibraryMinnesota, March 05, 2017Displaying male
Males typically perform a "drum display" atop a raised surface such as a log or stump. Ruffed Grouse do not produce the drumming sound by hitting their wings against their body, but rather by creating miniature sonic booms while pumping their wings back and forth.
© Nathaniel H. Taylor / Macaulay LibraryNew York, April 13, 2012Not all videos have sound
Adult
When not displaying, sexes are difficult to tell apart. Often forages among tree branches during winter, especially when snow covers the ground.
© Richard Hix / Macaulay LibraryWyoming, October 03, 2016Adult
Often bathes in dust or lies on anthills ("anting"), fluffing feathers to clean them.
© David Weber / Macaulay LibraryNew York, May 13, 2014Adult
Usually secretive and elusive, but occasional tame individuals actively approach humans.
© Sam Zhang / Macaulay LibraryMassachusetts, July 20, 2022Not all videos have sound
Adult
Medium-sized game bird with peaked crest, pale line through the eye, and dark band near tip of tail. Sometimes forages in trees, especially in winter, taking berries and buds.
© Marya Moosman / Macaulay LibraryIdaho, December 31, 2016Adult
Lives in forest undergrowth where it can be very difficult to see; often most easily seen when crossing roads.
© Tim Lenz / Macaulay LibraryNew York, June 22, 2015Similar SpeciesSpruce Grouse
Female
Female Spruce Grouse have rounded heads without the short crest of Ruffed Grouse. They're also darker brown, lacking the Ruffed Grouse's pale belly and strong dark stripes on the flanks.
© Brian Sullivan / Macaulay LibraryAlaska, May 20, 2012Similar SpeciesSooty Grouse
Female
Sooty Grouse are much larger and heavier than Ruffed Grouse, without the short crest. Sooty Grouse also lack Ruffed's dark bars on the flanks and dark band near the tip of the tail.
© Alex Lamoreaux / Macaulay LibraryWashington, July 31, 2015Similar SpeciesDusky Grouse
Female
Dusky Grouse are much larger and heavier than Ruffed Grouse, without the short crest. They also lack Ruffed's dark bars on the flanks and dark band near the tip of the tail.
© Angus Wilson / Macaulay LibraryColorado, May 22, 2016Similar SpeciesSharp-tailed Grouse
Female
Sharp-tailed Grouse tend to live in more open grassland and woodland than Ruffed Grouse, which live in forest. Sharp-tailed has a narrow tail without a wide dark band at the tip, and it lacks strong dark bars on the flanks.
© Chris Wood / Macaulay LibraryNorth Dakota, June 15, 2013Similar SpeciesRing-necked Pheasant
Female
Female Ring-necked Pheasants are longer necked and longer tailed than Ruffed Grouse, and they occur in more open settings such as agricultural lands and grasslands, rather than forest.
© Chuck Gates / Macaulay LibraryOregon, January 22, 2017Rotate Your Device to Better Compare
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Species in This Family
Pheasants, Grouse, and Allies(Order: Galliformes, Family: Phasianidae)
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