Minnesota Seasons - Ruffed Grouse

Conservation • Description • Habitat • Ecology • Distribution • Taxonomy


Conservation Status
IUCN Red List	LC - Least Concern
NatureServe	N5 - Secure SNR - Unranked
Minnesota	not listed

Photo by Dan W. Andree

Description

Size

15″ to 19″ in length

22″ wingspan

Voice

Similar Species

Habitat

Deciduous forests, mixed forests, riparian wiidlands

Ecology

Migration

Nesting

Food

Distribution

Occurrence

Common year-round resident

Maps

The Minnesota Ornithologists’ Union All Seasons Species Occurrence Map


Taxonomy
Class	Aves (birds)
Order	Galliformes (landfowl)
Family	Phasianidae (pheasants, grouse, and allies)
Subfamily	Tetraoninae (grouse)
Genus	Bonasa (Ruffed Grouse)

Ruffed Grouse is the only species in the genus Bonasa.

Subordinate Taxa
Appalachian Ruffed Grouse (Bonasa umbellus monticola) Columbian Ruffed Grouse (Bonasa umbellus affinis) Eastern Ruffed Grouse (Bonasa umbellus umbellus) Gray Ruffed Grouse (Bonasa umbellus umbelloides) Hoary Ruffed Grouse (Bonasa umbellus incana) Idaho Ruffed Grouse (Bonasa umbellus phaia) Midwestern Ruffed Grouse (Bonasa umbellus mediana) Olympic Ruffed Grouse (Bonasa umbellus castanea) Pacific Ruffed Grouse (Bonasa umbellus sabini) Ruffed Grouse (Bonasa umbellus labradorensis) Ruffed Grouse (Bonasa umbellus thayeri) St. Lawrence Ruffed Grouse (Bonasa umbellus togata) Vancouver Ruffed Grouse (Bonasa umbellus brunnescens) Yukon Ruffed Grouse (Bonasa umbellus yukonensis)

Synonyms
Tetrastes umbellus


Visitor Photos

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Bobbi Johnson

… in our crabapple. What a glorious sight!

Lane Keller

Got an up-close encounter with this bird right next to the gravel road.

Scott Bemman


Ramona Abrego


Dan W. Andree
Ruffed Grouse Nest and Eggs I didn’t stick around there long. It was kind of windy and chilly so took a couple quick photos and left so she would return to the nest.



Ruffed Grouse on her nest... It was located on an incline so difficult angle to photograph from. At one point my foot slipped and she did leave the nest pretending to be wounded and making a sound like she was. That was when I noticed she had more eggs than the first time(5-7-20) I encountered the nesting grouse. Anyway I left right away and it was a milder day. She would have just stayed on her nest hadn’t I slipped. I was a distance away and zoomed all the way in on her.		Now there are 12 eggs... Same nest, just more eggs.


Ruffed Grouse 10-26-19... In the woods rural Norman County, Mn.

Adult female Ruffed Grouse and...

		As I looked a little closer I noticed she had some little baby ones. They were so small and when lying still extremely hard to notice or see. I noticed one walking off and then looked much closer to be sure I did not accidentally step on one. I spoke softly…Do not worry momma grouse I am not going to hurt your babies. She just kind of looked at me funny and seemed to calm down. I took a couple quick photos and quietly walk back in the other direction not to disturb their outing. Some of the little ones were resting right on the wide trail. Possibly even napping as small as they were.
While out on a woodland trail near Twin Valley, Mn. I noticed a ruffed grouse that showed up suddenly near me acting kind of peculiar. She would make strange sounds wander into the brush then re-emerge sometimes ruffing up her feathers.

Bill Reynolds


MinnesotaSeasons.com Photos

Camera

Slideshows

Ruffed Grouse
Andree Reno Sanborn

About

Bonasa Umbellus

Ruffed Grouse
Allen Chartier

Ruffed Grouse - Bonasa umbellus
Jean-François Hic

slideshow


Visitor Videos

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Dan W. Andree

"Ruffed Grouse" on her nest
Nov 3, 2023

About

Back on a trail that I've been out on several times I came upon a ruffed grouse nesting. I had seen grouse in the area before, but this was the first nesting one I had come across. I filmed her briefly, then quietly left not to scare her off her nest.


Other Videos

Ruffed Grouse Basics
DirksOutdoors

About

Uploaded on Feb 27, 2012

I met Dr. Linda Ordiway at the 2012 Eastern Outdoor Sports show in Harrisburg PA. She agreed to give us a few minutes in front of the camera to review Ruffed Grouse basic biology.

www.ruffedgrousesociety.org

www.dirksoutdoors.com

Ruffed Grouse Drumming
The Music of Nature

About

Uploaded on Feb 4, 2010

In the spring, male Ruffed Grouse perch on fallen logs and make a low-pitched drumming sound by opening and closing their wings in rapid succession. The thumping starts slow but quickly gains in speed, and the rapidly beating wings turn into a complete blur when the drumroll reaches its peak.

One might think the thumps are produced by the beating of the wings against the chest, but in actuality the thumps are little sonic booms created as air suddenly fills a vacuum made when the wings are thrust outward from the breast.

Check out our blog post about this subject at the musicofnature.org web site: http://www.musicofnature.org/home/ruffed_grouse_drumming/

Voices: Ruffed Grouse
LabofOrnithology

About

Uploaded on May 24, 2010

Listen as Macaulay Library Audio Archivist Martha Fischer describes listening to the drum of a male Ruffed Grouse.

Learn more about Ruffed Grouse on All About Birds: http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/ruffed_grouse/id

Audio recordings by Jonathan R. Storm. Photographs by Marie Read. To explore more audio recordings visit the Macaulay Library: http://macaulaylibrary.org/index.do

Two Ruffed Grouse Visit the Ontario FeederWatch Cam
LabofOrnithology

About

Published on Feb 15, 2013

You can watch live between 7AM and 7PM EST at http://allaboutbirds.org/feederwatchcam

Two Ruffed Grouse have a leisurely dinner on the feeder platform at the FeederWatch Cam.

Keep up with all the Cornell Lab of Ornithology's Bird Cams happenings by subscribing to our eNews: http://info.allaboutbirds.org/birdcam...

Ruffed Grouse Society Lehigh Valley Chapter Habitat Project
James10252010

About

Published on Aug 23, 2012

The Lehigh Valley Chapter of the RGS combined efforts with the Pennsylvania Game Commission to create early successional habitat growth in SE Pennsylvania to benefit the Ruffed Grouse.

Camcorder


Visitor Sightings

Report a sighting of this bird.
		This button not working for you? Simply email us at info@MinnesotaSeasons.com. Be sure to include a location.

Bobbi Johnson
10/13/2024

Location: Silver Bay, MN

… in our crabapple. What a glorious sight!

Lane Keller
10/25/2021

Location: Agassiz National Wildlife Refuge

Got an up-close encounter with this bird right next to the gravel road.

Luciearl
4/4/2021

Location: Cass County

Trail cam


Scott Bemman 9/15/2020	Location: McCarthy Beach State Park


Ramona Abrego	Location: Cook County

Dan W. Andree
5/14/2020

Location: Woodlands in Norman County, Mn.

It was located on an incline so difficult angle to photograph from. At one point my foot slipped and she did leave the nest pretending to be wounded and making a sound like she was. That was when I noticed she had more eggs than the first time(5-7-20) I encountered the nesting grouse. Anyway I left right away and it was a milder day. She would have just stayed on her nest hadn’t I slipped. I was a distance away and zoomed all the way in on her.

Dan W. Andree
5/7/2020

Location: Woodlands in Norman County, Mn.

I didn’t stick around there long. It was kind of windy and chilly so took a couple quick photos and left so she would return to the nest.

Dan W. Andree
10/26/2019

Location: Rural Norman Co., Mn.

In the woods


Ramona Abrego 10/28/2018	Location: Becker County


Ramona Abrego 10/24/2018	Location: Becker County

Dan W. Andree
June 2018

Location: near Twin Valley, Mn

While out on a woodland trail near Twin Valley, Mn. I noticed a ruffed grouse that showed up suddenly near me acting kind of peculiar. She would make strange sounds wander into the brush then re-emerge sometimes ruffing up her feathers. As I looked a little closer I noticed she had some little baby ones. They were so small and when lying still extremely hard to notice or see. I noticed one walking off and then looked much closer to be sure I did not accidentally step on one. I spoke softly…Do not worry momma grouse I am not going to hurt your babies. She just kind of looked at me funny and seemed to calm down. I took a couple quick photos and quietly walk back in the other direction not to disturb their outing. Some of the little ones were resting right on the wide trail. Possibly even napping as small as they were.