This live-stream camera provides a one-of-kind viewing of greater sage-grouse: http://bit.ly/GRSGCAM. You’ll want to get up early (at least on the West Coast) to view all the action on the lek. What the heck is a lek? A lek is the traditional breeding ground where male sage-grouse puff out their chests and fan their tail feathers to attract females. Leks are located in the western United States and southern Alberta and Saskatchewan Canada in sagebrush country. Sagebrush is a plant that acts as a nursery area for a lot of wildlife such as pronghorn, elk, mule deer and golden eagles. Viewers might see one of these critters wandering by.
This lek, named “Cowboy Lek,” is located in Southeastern Oregon. Because these birds are extremely sensitive to disturbance, the actual lek location and name are kept secret from everyone except the wildlife biologists who study these magnificent birds.
The best time to view the male sage-grouse courtship dance is between 5:00 am and 9:00 am PST when the birds are in full strut. This is one of the top wildlife wonders of the world. Dozens of males gather as the sun rises on the sagebrush steppe to display their fancy dancing. The males also fight to display dominance, so watch out for feathers flying. There is always a chance the birds will flush, leaving the lek early because a coyote or other predator scared them off. But they will return each morning, until mid-May when the breeding season is over.
Male sage grouse are large, about 5 pounds, and sport a white ruff around their necks in addition to the typical mottled brown, black and white plumage. Males have bright yellow air sacks on their breasts, which they inflate during their mating display, also known as “strutting.” During the strut, a male fans his spiky tail, raises his yellow eyecombs, and struts a few steps forward. At the same time, he inflates his yellow air sacs that make a loud popping sound that’s most like uncorking a champagne bottle. Females, or hens, are molted brown, black and white. They are smaller and viewers must look hard to spot them.
Each spring fish and wildlife biologists across the 11 state range and over 165 million acres count sage grouse. Greater sage-grouse once occupied more than 290 million acres of sagebrush in the West, but the bird has lost more than half of its habitat due to growing threats from rangeland fire, invasive species and development.
The deteriorating health of western sagebrush landscapes has sparked an unprecedented and proactive partnership across eleven states to conserve the uniquely American habitat that supports iconic wildlife, outdoor recreation, ranching and other traditional land uses. To learn more about sage-grouse and the extraordinary conservation campaign underway, please visit: http://www.fws.gov/greatersagegrouse/