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Sharp-tailed grouse video published by Audubon Magazine

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I’m pleased that the online version of Audubon Magazine used my video of Columbian sharp-tailed grouse to accompany the still photographs by my friend Noppadol Paothong. Over the years, I have accompanied Nop on several trips to this lek. His photos and my video were from our most recent visit last spring. The link to my video is about ¾ down into the story. As the story says, traveling to the lek is via snowshoe in the dark, and the conditions are typically windy and very cold. That’s just the beginning, though. Shooting video of sharp-tailed grouse is an even greater challenge. Even with state-of-the-art cameras, shooting video of sharp-tailed grouse is difficult due to their incredibly fast and erratic movements. However, witnessing the highly animated dancing courtship displays to impress females to mate is worth the effort. 

While it is a fun challenge, it is, more importantly, a subject whose story needs telling. First described by the Lewis & Clark expedition, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse were once the most abundant grouse in the West. Today, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse occupy less than 10 percent of its historic range. It is currently considered a Species of Concern in several U.S. states.

LINK TO AUDUBON MAGAZINE STORY WITH THE VIDEO: https://www.audubon.org/magazine/spring-2023/a-dancers-stage

Sights and sounds from a Columbian sharp-tailed grouse lek

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This two-minute video from a Columbian sharp-tailed grouse (Tympanuchus phasianellus columbianus) lek is made up of mostly slow-motion footage to see the detail in the movement of the fast-moving grouse. Sharp-tailed grouse gather at the same exact spot (called a lek) in the spring to mate. Males will face off and battle each other for dominance and attract the attention of females. Things to pay attention to: near the end of the video you can see the fast-moving mating dance that the males perform to attract females. I love how the males flick the tip of their tails back and forth, something that can only be seen in slow motion. The same goes for the stomping of their fur-like covered feet. In the final clip, a group of males tries to catch the attention of a female, but she’s not interested in any of the suitors and runs away. EDITOR’S NOTE: sound is not sound at time of image capture due to the use of slow-motion filming.

Be sure to click the full-screen button!
BLOG POST Columbian sharp-tailed grouse dance to impress
PHOTO GALLERY of all my Columbian Sharp-tailed grouse photos

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Columbian sharp-tailed grouse dance to impress

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Two male Columbian sharp-tailed grouse faceoff each other on a lek in southern Wyoming.
Two Columbian sharp-tailed grouse dance on a lek in southern Wyoming.

I HAVE MADE occasional trips to photograph Columbian sharp-tailed grouse on a lek in southern Wyoming for almost a decade. The Columbian sharp-tailed grouse (Tympanuchus phasianellus columbianus) is one of the seven recognized subspecies of North American sharp-tailed grouse. It is also the rarest and smallest of the subspecies of sharp-tailed grouse. Columbian sharp-tailed grouse have experienced declines in distribution and population due to overuse and development of the mountain shrub and grasslands that it favors. It is native to the sagebrush steppe of the western United States and British Columbia. First described by the Lewis & Clark expedition, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse were once the most abundant grouse in the West. Today, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse no occupy less than 10 percent of its historic range. It is currently considered a Species of Concern in several U.S. states

Male Columbian sharp-tailed grouse perform their mating dance on a lek during the pre-dawn in southern Wyoming.

Like other grouse, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse congregate year after year in the spring on a small area known as a lek. Males perform highly animated dancing courtship displays to impress females to mate. These displays consist of rapidly stomping their feet at blur-like speed while keeping with their wings extended, often rotating in a circle. It always makes me smile when they synchronize their dance with each other, turning and freezing in position simultaneously as their neighbor. I also always enjoy hearing them approach in the pre-dawn darkness as they approach the lek. Their weird hooting, cackling, gobbling sounds, and loud foot-stomping are memorable.

Photographing these fast and erratic moving grouse is always a challenge. The birds dart across the lek at high speed, with males stopping suddenly to perform their mating dance. Trying to shoot video is even a more significant challenge. I joke with my shooting buddy Noppadol Paothong that photographing sharp-tail grouse is the ultimate test of camera technology and a photographer’s skill.

Two male Columbian sharp-tailed grouse faceoff each other on a lek in southern Wyoming.
Columbian sharp-tailed grouse males will stare each other down as they try to protect their personal space position on the lek.
Two male Columbian sharp-tailed grouse fight on a lek in southern Wyoming.
Two male Columbian sharp-tailed grouse fight on a lek in southern Wyoming.
The birds seriously fight each other, pulling at each other’s feathers or using their sharp talons.
A male Columbian sharp-tailed grouse is chased by other males on a lek in southern Wyoming.
A male Columbian sharp-tailed grouse takes flight from a lek in southern Wyoming.
Ultimately, the staredown results in a fight with one of the males being chased from the space on the lek.
A male Columbian sharp-tailed grouse performs a mating dance on a lek in southern Wyoming.
Males try to impress females with their crazy foot-stomping dance, rapidly stamping their feet at blur-like speed while keeping their wings extended, often rotating in a circle.
A female Columbian sharp-tailed grouse is chased by a male on a lek in southern Wyoming. The Columbian sharp-tailed grouse (Tympanuchus phasianellus columbianus) is one of the seven recognized subspecies of North American sharp-tailed grouse. It is also the rarest and smallest of the subspecies of sharp-tailed grouse. Columbian sharp-tailed grouse have experienced declines in distribution and population due to overuse and development of the mountain shrub and grasslands that it favors. It is native to the sagebrush steppe of the western United States and British Columbia. First described by the Lewis & Clark expedition, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse were once the most abundant grouse in the West. Today, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse no occupy less than 10 percent of its historic range. It is currently considered a Species of Concern in several U.S. states. Like other grouse, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse congregate year after year in the spring on a small area known as a lek. Males perform highly animated dancing courtship displays to impress females to mate. These displays consist of rapidly stamping their feet at blur-like speed while keeping with their wings extended, often rotating in a circle.
Females are picky on their choice of male to mate with. Males will chase a female back and forth across the lek in an attempt to mate. Here, a female makes her escape from a male Columbian sharp-tailed grouse.
A male Columbian sharp-tailed grouse struts across a lek in southern Wyoming.
This photo shows a male Columbian sharp-tailed grouse with its distinctive orange comb and the purple air sacks that they inflate to amplify the courtship call and display their health. Also, note on the down-like feet the fleshy projections on their toes called pectinae. These help distribute the bird’s weight when walking on snow as snowshoes do.
A male Columbian sharp-tailed grouse performs a mating dance on a lek in southern Wyoming.
This photo is a favorite from my most recent visit. I like the “tiger-like” stripes on the bird’s body caused by the shadow of its extended mating dance wing position.
A male Columbian sharp-tailed grouse rests on a lek in southern Wyoming.
A male takes a break from protecting his position and trying to impress the females with his dancing on the lek.
VIDEO Sights and sounds from a Columbian sharp-tailed grouse lek in southern Wyoming
PHOTO GALLERY of all my Columbian Sharp-tailed grouse photos

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