Male Greater Sage-Grouse portrait – Nikon D810, f6.3, 1/2000, ISO 400, -0.3 EV, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light
Finding Greater Sage-Grouse away from their leks isn’t easy. It takes sharp eyes, keen observation skills, plus knowing what to look for or by having a friend like me ride along with you who has those skills and attributes.
If you know where a lek is you can probably find Greater Sage-Grouse in the vast areas around the lek. When I say “vast” I mean hundreds or thousands of acres.
Earlier this week I saw a local guy post on a rare bird Facebook group about Greater Sage-Grouse where he exclaimed “They’re baaaack”. That post was removed later and I’m not certain if the post was removed by the guy or one of the admins. But here is some information on that:
Greater Sage-Grouse aren’t rare in Utah and they never “left”. Maybe the guy was just saying that the grouse were back on the lek but the fact is that they have been on their leks for weeks now.
Greater Sage-Grouse are nonmigratory. They will will move to lower elevations during the winter to find food and to higher elevations during the warmer months for the same reason.
Greater Sage-Grouse male close up – Nikon D810, f6.3, 1/1250, ISO 400, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light
Even though Greater Sage-Grouse are large birds they can be hard to spot in their habitat because of their cryptic plumage patterns. If the grouse squats down they can easily seem to disappear in the vast sagebrush habitat. On more than a few occasions I’ve spotted them and the next moment I have had a hard time finding them again.
Pointing them out to other people with less visual acuity can be a serious challenge too even when they are nearby unless they are near a prominent feature in the landscape.
Male Greater Sage-Grouse in sagebrush steppe habitat – Nikon D810, f6.3, 1/1250, ISO 400, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light
There are Greater Sage-Grouse in the Wasatch Mountains not far from East Canyon State Park as a crow flies. I’ve photographed them away from the lek that is up there a few times. When I drive up on that road I always drive slow because I’m looking for the grouse and other birds I might miss seeing if I were moving faster.
Finding these stunning grouse away from their leks isn’t easy but it is rewarding when I succeed.
Life is good.
Mia
Click here to see more of my Greater Sage-Grouse photos plus facts and information about this species.
Gorgeous photos Mia.
I always learn something from you – today I had to look up “lek”. Very cool word, and I’m sure, a very special place 🙂
I do envy your eyesight – knowing that it is complemented by a vast storehouse of knowledge.
They are so well suited for their habitat. So true about them never leaving. This winter I was in the area of the lek in northern Utah and they were all along the road in December- February. They were not displaying but they were eating along the road edge and sitting in the middle of the road. I worry they will get hit when locals blast along at high speeds. I’d love to see them other than the famous lek in our northern location. I am still looking for sharp tailed too! I guess I missed the opportunity to know the location before it became unsharable, due to too many people bothering them for photos.