| This bird was known as "Blue Grouse" until, in 2006, the A.O.U. announced a long-anticipated split of the taxon into two species, Dusky Grouse and Sooty Grouse (D. fuliginosus), essentially the eastern and western populations, with the dividing line essentially being the Cascades and the Sierra Nevada. I was disappointed that this split did not result in my picking up an "armchair lifer," but it appears that all of my sightings have been of Dusky Grouse. Nothing in the pictures below can be used to indicate species, as the best field criteria are voice and the color of the male's air sac. The Okanogan Valley is described by the AOU as an intergrade zone between the two species, but local experts say that in fact virtually all of the individual birds in this area are Dusky Grouse. To further complicate matters, the southwestern populations are considered a distinct subspecies, and may in fact represent a viable species. |
| Right about when I first started counting the birds I'd seen, a displaying Blue Grouse on Snowflake Mountain. near Aspen, Colorado, was my milestone 300th species. Years later, in Washington State's Okanogan Valley, I drove past this hen along the road; I doubled back to view the bird more closely. She walked very slowly away from my car, scolding me as she walked, and I finally realized I was between her and her brood. I moved away from them to avoid any undue disturbance, and enjoyed the sight of her nearly full-grown young bursting into flight to cross the road safely. |
| Ellen Walton had sharp eyes to spot this Blue Grouse on the Coyote Call trail above the Valle Grande in northern New Mexico, in August of 2004. The bird was clearly hoping the "sticking one's head in the sand" trick would work, and that we would not spot it if it stood perfectly still. Fortunately for this lovely bird, we meant no harm! |
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