Grouse

Grouse Temporal range: Early Miocene to recent
Male sage grouse Centrocercus urophasianus
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Aves
Order:	Galliformes
Family:	Phasianidae
Subfamily:	Phasianinae
Tribe:	Tetraonini Leach, 1819
Genera
Pucrasia[note 1] Meleagris[note 1] Bonasa Tetrastes Centrocercus Dendragapus Tympanuchus Lagopus Falcipennis Canachites Tetrao Lyrurus and see text
Synonyms
Tetraonidae Vigors, 1825 Tetraoninae Vigors, 1825

Grouse

Forest species flock only in autumn and winter, though individuals tolerate each other when they meet. Prairie species are more social, and tundra species (ptarmigans, Lagopus) are the most social, forming flocks of up to 100 in winter. All grouse spend most of their time on the ground, though when alarmed, they may take off in a flurry and go into a long glide.^[8]

Most species stay within their breeding range all year, but make short seasonal movements; many individuals of the

Grouse make up a considerable part of the vertebrate biomass in the Arctic and Subarctic. Their numbers may fall sharply in years of bad weather or high predator populations—significant grouse populations are a major food source for lynx, foxes, martens, and birds of prey. However, because of their large clutches, they can recover quickly.^{[citation needed]}

The three tundra species have maintained their former numbers. The prairie and forest species have declined greatly because of habitat loss, though popular game birds such as the

The phenotypic difference between males and females is called sexual dimorphism.^[9] Male grouse tend to be larger than female grouse,^[9] which seems to hold true across all the species of grouse, with some difference within each species in terms of how drastic the size difference is.^[9] The hypothesis with the most supporting evidence for the evolution of sexual dimorphism in grouse is sexual selection.^[9] Sexual selection favors large males; stronger selection for larger size in males leads to greater size dimorphism.^[9] Female size will increase correspondingly as male size increases, and this is due to heredity (but not to the extent of the male size).^[9] This is because females that are smaller will still be able to reproduce without a substantial disadvantage, but this is not the case with males.^[9] The largest among the male grouse (commonly dubbed 'Biggrouse') attract the greatest numbers of females during their mating seasons.^{[citation needed]}

Mating behavior selection

Male grouse display lekking behavior, which is when many males come together in one area and put on displays to attract females.^[15] Females selectively choose among the males present for traits they find more appealing.^[15] Male grouse exhibit two types: typical lekking and exploded lekking.^[9] In typical lekking, males display in small areas defending a limited territory, and in exploded lekking, displaying males are covered over an expansive land area and share larger territories.^[9] Male grouse can also compete with one another for access to female grouse through territoriality, in which a male defends a territory which has resources that females need, like food and nest sites.^[9] These differences in male behavior in mating systems account for the evolution of body size in grouse.^[9] Males of territorial species were smaller than those of exploded lekking species, and males of typical lekking species were the largest overall.^[9] The male birds that exhibit lekking behavior, and have to compete with other males for females to choose them, have greater sexual dimorphism in size.^[16] This suggests the hypothesis of sexual selection affecting male body size and also gives an explanation for why some species of grouse have a more drastic difference between male and female body size than others.^{[citation needed]}

Contrast with other bird species

Sexual size dimorphism can manifest itself differently between grouse and other birds. In some cases, the female is dominant over the male in breeding behavior, which can result in females that are larger than the males.^[17]

In culture

Species

Extant genera

Image	Genus	Extant Species
	Pucrasia – koklass pheasant[note 1]	Koklass pheasant, Pucrasia macrolopha
	Meleagris – turkeys[note 1]	Wild turkey, Meleagris gallopavo Ocellated turkey, Meleagris ocellata
	Bonasa – ruffed grouse	Ruffed grouse, Bonasa umbellus
	Canachites – spruce grouse	Spruce grouse, Canachites canadensis Franklin's grouse, C. c. franklinii
	Dendragapus – blue grouse	Sooty grouse, Dendragapus fuliginosus Dusky grouse, Dendragapus obscurus
	Centrocercus – sage grouse	Gunnison grouse, Centrocercus minimus Greater sage-grouse, Centrocercus urophasianus
	Tympanuchus – prairie grouse	Greater prairie chicken , Tympanuchus cupido Attwater's prairie chicken , T. c. attwateri †Heath hen, T. c. cupido Lesser prairie chicken Tympanuchus pallidicinctus Sharp-tailed grouse, Tympanuchus phasianellus Columbian sharp-tailed grouse, T. p. columbianus
	Tetrastes – hazel grouse	Hazel grouse, Tetrastes bonasia Chinese grouse, Tetrastes sewerzowi
	Lagopus – ptarmigans	Willow ptarmigan, Lagopus lagopus Red grouse, L. l. scotica White-tailed ptarmigan, Lagopus leucura Rock ptarmigan, Lagopus muta
	Falcipennis – Siberian grouse	Siberian grouse, Falcipennis falcipennis
	Tetrao – capercaillies	Black-billed capercaillie, Tetrao urogalloides Western capercaillie, Tetrao urogallus Cantabrian capercaillie, T. u. cantabricus
	Lyrurus – black grouse	Caucasian grouse, Lyrurus mlokosiewiczi Black grouse, Lyrurus tetrix

Extinct genera

• Genus †Proagriocharis
  • Proagriocharis kimballensis^{[18][note 2]}
• Genus †Rhegminornis
  • Rhegminornis calobates^{[19][20][note 3]}

References

Footnotes

Notes

1. ^ ^{a b c d} Traditionally excluded, but recent phylogenomic data have suggested a close alliance; these species can thus be regarded as basal Tetraonini, but treatment still varies.^[1]
2. ^ Extinct species, late Miocene and early Pliocene.
3. ^ Extinct species, early Miocene.

General

• De Juana, E. (1994). "Family Tetraonidae (Grouse)". In del Hoyo, J.; Elliott, A.; Sargatal, J. (eds.). Handbook of the Birds of the World, Vol. 2. New World Vultures to Guineafowl. Barcelona:
  ISBN 978-84-87334-15-3
  .
• "What Do Grouse Eat?". The Upland Hunter. 1 September 2017.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Tetraoninae.

• Grouse videos on the Internet Bird Collection
• Johnsgard, P. (1982). "Etho-Ecological Apects of Hybridization in the Tetraonidae". World Pheasant Association Journal. VII: 42–57.
• "Grouse" .
  New International Encyclopedia
  . 1905.