Habitat Usage and Home Range of Sharp-tailed Grouse:
A Pilot Study


Jason Smith
School of Science and Natural Resources
Lake Superior State University
Sault Ste. Marie, 49783



Abstract.    Sharp-tailed grouse (Tympanuchus phasianellus) are upland birds of the prairie,
but due to vanishing prairies and grasslands in Michigan, the state's sharp-tailed grouse
population is in steady decline. Field studies suggest that management for sharp-tailed grouse
should encompass more than the approximate 260 ha previously believed to be needed for
management. To follow up on this concern for wide expanses of grasslands, a study was
conducted in the summer of 1996 on sharp-tailed grouse of the east unit of Hiawatha National
Forest near Raco, MI. The objectives were to determine the home ranges and habitat usage for
the grouse. In May, four grouse (two males and two females) were captured on a courtship
dancing ground on Raco's abandoned airfield, fitted with I 5 g necklace radio transmitters, and
monitored from 1 May to 1 August. Home ranges and habitat usage for the four grouse were
identified using a GIS. Home ranges covered 218.6 ha and 121.7 ha for the males, and 41.6 ha
and 159.3 ha for the females. Each grouse used open land more than red or jack pine stands, but
they also made use of the young pine stands surrounding the open areas. This mosaic of habitat
of young pine stands and grasslands is a major consideration for management because the
availabiliy, of wide expanses of grasslands in Michigan is decreasing, and this mosaic is becoming
more common. This mosaic may offer adequate sharp-tailed grouse habitat, thus providing
managers with a target habitat that will strike a balance between our needs and the needs of the
grouse.


References

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