Ruffed Grouse

Bonasa umbellus

The courtship drumming of the Ruffed Grouse is less well known to Missouri residents today than in the mid-1800s. According to Widmann (1907) this species was numerous in most wooded parts of Missouri until the 1880s. Frequent burning and grazing of forest lands have created more open land and less brushy young forests, the habitat of this species (Thompson et al. 1988). By the 1950s most of the Ruffed Grouse in Missouri were limited to small pockets of habitat. Thompson et al. (1988) suggested that today much more habitat is available than grouse to fill it. Reintroduction by the Missouri Department of Conservation in the second half of this century has restored Ruffed Grouse to many forested areas of the state.

Code Frequency

Early season observers documented drumming individuals and two reports of fledglings. Special Conservation Department drumming counts provide a more accurate picture of the species' distribution (Thompson et al. 1988). Many Atlasers were not in the field during the "drumming season," so it is likely much evidence that would have resulted in potential breeding records was not observed.

Distribution

An accurate distribution for the state was not determined by Atlas Project results. Most records do fall into the known range as described in University of Missouri Extension agricultural guide: Ruffed Grouse in Missouri: Its Ecology and Management (Thompson et al. 1988). The Pike County record is within the known continuous range of this species. The Ray and Nodaway records are near known release sites (Thompson et al. 1988).

Abundance

The Atlas Project did not collect enough information to determine the relative abundance of this species. Drumming counts conducted in March and April are used to establish estimates of relative abundance (Thompson et al. 1988).

Phenology

Male drumming normally occurs in March and April. Atlas Project fledgling sightings are consistent with hatching dates reported by Thompson et al. (1988).

Breeding Evidence

Reported in 17 (1.4%) of 1,207 blocks

Home|Lists of Illustrations and Tables|Preface|Acknowledgments|Introduction|The Natural Divisions of Missouri|Guide to Species Accounts|Index of Bird Accounts|Appendix A.|Appendix B.|Appendix C.|Appendix D.|Appendix E.|Literature Cited