Sharp-tailed Grouse - BirdForum Opus

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Tympanuchus phasianellus

Photo by kegressy
Photo taken: Manitoulin Islad, Lake Huron.

Identification

Mottled brown and grey underparts with spotted underparts. The tail feathers are long and pointed. During spring, the male has yellow "combs" (eyebrows) and purple air sacs on his neck that are inflated when they display. Female: Very much like the male but without the yellow eyebrows and purple air sacs.

Distribution

Canada and United States.

Taxonomy

• T. p. caurus: northern Alaska to southern Yukon Territory, northern British Columbia, and northern Alberta
• T. p. kennicotti: Mackenzie River to Great Slave Lake
• T. p. phasianellus: northern Manitoba to northern Ontario and west-central Quebec
• T. p. campestris: southern Manitoba to northern Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin
• T. p. jamesi: north-central Alberta and Saskatchewan to Colorado and Nebraska
• T. p. columbianus: north-central British Columbia to eastern Oregon, northern Utah, and western Colorado
• T. p. hueyi: formerly northeastern New Mexico; extirpated by 1952

Habitat

Prairies, grasslands, agricultural areas and open woodland habitats.

Behaviour

Diet

The diet includes seeds, leaves, grains, berries, buds and flowers.

Breeding

The nests are shallow depressions lined by feathers, ferns or grass on the ground usually under shrubs or grass. 10 to 14 eggs are laid. After hatching, the young quickly leave the nest, but the mother keeps tending the young and leads them to feeding areas.

References

1. Clements, J. F., P. C. Rasmussen, T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, T. A. Fredericks, J. A. Gerbracht, D. Lepage, A. Spencer, S. M. Billerman, B. L. Sullivan, M. Smith, and C. L. Wood. 2024. The eBird/Clements checklist of Birds of the World: v2024. Downloaded from https://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
2. Gill, F, D Donsker, and P Rasmussen (Eds). 2024. IOC World Bird List (v 14.2). Doi 10.14344/IOC.ML.14.2. http://www.worldbirdnames.org/

• List of references

Recommended Citation

• BirdForum Opus contributors. (2025) Sharp-tailed Grouse. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 12 May 2025 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Sharp-tailed_Grouse

External Links

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