Willow Grouse (Lagopède des saules) (Oiseaux du Québec)

Willow Grouse (Lagopède des saules)

Lagopus lagopus

Summary ⁶

The Willow Ptarmigan (Lagopus lagopus) is a bird in the grouse subfamily Tetraoninae of the pheasant family Phasianidae. It is also known as the Willow Grouse and in the British Isles, where it was previously believed to be a separate species, as the Red Grouse. It is a sedentary species, breeding in birch and other forests and moorlands in northern Europe, the tundra of Scandinavia, Siberia, Alaska and northern Canada, in particular in the provinces of...

Biology ⁷

Male red grouse mark out their territories with an energetic display during which they leap into the air, giving their characteristic 'go-back-go-back' call. They compete for an area of moor with plenty of heather and bilberry bushes in which the female will produce a nest scrape for her eggs. These eggs are well camouflaged, laid in April and may number ten or more. The chicks hatch after about three weeks, and are fed by both birds for six weeks. They can fly after 13 days. Red grouse have been a quarry species for years, but the sport only became a source of lucrative business when the breech-loading gun was invented in the mid 19th century, and the railways provided access to the moors. The 'Glorious twelfth' of August, the opening of the grouse-shooting season, was apparently chosen to fit in with the parliamentary summer recess, as well as the birds' breeding season.