Ruffed Grouse, Bear Head Lake State Park, Minnesota
The first morning after we moved from Savanna Portage State Park to Bear Head Lake I went out early to the lake in search for a critter I have seen there before in 2019 (more about this one in a later blog post). The camp sites are nicely separated from each other by thickets consisting of spruce, pine, birch, and other trees. I heard a quiet, hen-like cluck in the bushes and decided just to wait and see what happens, Sure enough, a Ruffed Grouse came out of the thicket and balanced slowly on top of a fallen log towards me. There were about half a dozen more birds but this one posed nicely for about three minutes. Later we found out that they were hanging out in the campground most of the time. Like White-tailed Deer, they figured out that the presence of people is not really a threat to them and a campground is a place that potential predators more likely would avoid.
Since it wasn’t mating time we did not hear the rapid-fire drumming sound of a male, but watching these birds, who blend in with there plumage to their environment so well, was worth to get out of the sleeping bag early.
Nikon Z6II, Nikon FTZ adapter, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM S, Induro GIT 404XL tripod, Induro GHB2 gimbal head. @ 600mm, 1/320 s, f/6.3, ISO 2500