doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Report from the North Country

I have yet to find a drumming log on the property. Yesterday I flushed the bird that had been drumming for half an hour. There was a log nearby, but no reason to believe it was a regular drumming log. But your measure, I should have two point five pairs, if we count my a field

It’s common for them to have a great deal of grouse poop on them

I know of several

Yup. That is what I have not found. Although the log the other night did not have any moss on it. It was sort of worn, but mostly just rotting. Zero poop

Do grouse only drum from a certain log/location, or do they drum from perches or on the ground?

In the springtime they have preferred spots, especially the older birds. I witnessed a young grouse attempting to drum on the side of a dirt road one time, but, he hadn’t perfected his method, and wasn’t able to drum.

It seems to be a ground thing, if they drum from a perch, I haven’t seen it. It is a high risk behavior, and the timing is such that the grouse are advertising a meal right as the avian predators have a nest full of hungry mouths to feed. Gordon Gullion figured from his research and observations at the Cloquet forest that every time a goshawk saw a grouse, that grouse ended up dead, either eaten on the spot, or, stashed for later.

The sound is low frequency (bass) and a bit non directional. It is a bit of a challenge to pinpoint the exact location, so it helps to have visual contact before the behavior starts. When I was younger (with better ears) I would attempt to stalk a fall drummer, but, didn’t have much success. The grouse didn’t seem to be persistent with drumming in the fall, or nearly as territorial, maybe they were just keeping in practice for spring?

Best,
Ted

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