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Easter Sunrise on the Muddy Mountain lek

05 Apr
male grouse line up to try to impress the girls

male grouse line up to try to impress the girls

One of the largest Greater Sage Grouse leks in southern Wyoming lies right on our lambing grounds below Muddy Mountain. We don’t start lambing until after the lekking season is past, but sometimes we go up just to watch the birds courting. It reminds me of a singles bar scene, where a bunch of guys show up and try to pick up a lady. The guys are the ones with the big white puffy chests, and the hens are the smaller brown ones. A lot of hooting and chasing around goes on, and I’m not too clear one why one guy becomes the chosen one. And these guys don’t seem to stick around for rearing chicks!

This particular area is slated for oil and gas development, and it has also been proposed for addition into Wyoming’s Sage Grouse core area, which would give some extra protections to the birds. It is also the nexus of a proposed mitigation area for the Grouse, which are awaiting a status determination from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Sage Grouse dancing under Muddy Mountain

Sage Grouse dancing under Muddy Mountain

guys Sage Grouse looking for "Easter Chicks"

guy Sage Grouse looking for “Easter Chicks”

 
1 Comment

Posted by on April 5, 2015 in Events, Nature and Wildlife

 

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One response to “Easter Sunrise on the Muddy Mountain lek

  1. patholscher

    April 6, 2015 at 6:31 AM

    Great photos!

     

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