Female spruce grouse (pics included)

[Steve Foss]

I came on a male and five female spruce grouse near Snowbank Lake this morning. Mr. Sprucie was not at all cooperative, staying in the thick underbrush while he wooed his harem.

But some of the females didn't mind modeling for me, and that was just fine. I had great shots of a male from last fall but no females, so this time it was the other way around.

Not as flashy as the Misters, but the Misses look pretty cool, too.

Both with the Canon 20D and Canon 100-400L IS at iso200, handheld.

1/500 at f7.1, 210mm

1/200 at f7.1, 235mm

[JayinMN]

Awesome shots. I have yet to come across any spruce grouse. Are they as easy to approach as books say they are?

[Dbl]

Nice shots, I like that close up shot. The dark background makes it pop.

[Steve Foss]

Thanks guys. Jay, they are easy to get and stay close to. They tend to stay in the thick stuff, though, so it's hard to get clean images.

[waskawood]

Very nice Scat. Question. Is the spruce grouse related to the spruce goose that is native to California?

[Steve Foss]

Hah! No, I'm quite sure it's a different strain altogether.