A Curious Collection of Peculiar Creatures

It’s easy to tell the difference between the male and female sage grouse. That’s because the male boasts some of the most unusual avian accessories around: two large, yellow, egg-shaped air sacs, which he can inflate with about a gallon of air just by breathing in. They’re quite a sight! When filled, the male can shake them to make wobbly, popping noises. Why? To attract a mate during breeding season, of course. The male sage grouse will also show off by fanning his magnificent tail feathers. In comparison, the females, with their grey-brown plumage, appear quite plain!

Greater sage grouse can reach up to 2 feet (60 cm) tall and weigh up to around 6.5 pounds (3 kg).

As their name suggests, the sage grouse lives in sagebrush plains. They are North American birds, native to the western United States and southeastern Canada. Between March and May, sage grouse will visit their courting grounds, known as leks, to complete their mating displays.

These birds mainly eat plants and will spend their days dining on fresh shoots and leaves. In warmer months, they’ll also eat small insects and flowers. Ideally, their habitat will have a water source close by, but if this isn’t possible, sage grouse will fly up to 3 miles (5 km) twice a day for a drink.

Due to the ever-increasing demand for crops such as wheat and potatoes, as well as products like oil and gas, the sage grouse’s habitat is quickly being lost, which has caused their population to decline. Sage grouse are very sensitive to human disruption, and their numbers provide a good indication of how healthy the ecosystem is. Unfortunately, humans now use so many of the areas where the sage grouse used to live that the birds inhabit only half of their original range.

Fun Facts

The typical life span of a sage grouse is three to six years. Females often outlive males, though, because people hunt the males for their stunning feathers.
In the winter, the sage grouse gets water by eating snow.
As many as 70 males (or more!) can be present during mating displays, generally only one or two of them will be chosen as mates by the females.
Males stand beside females during their courtship dance, rather than in front of or behind them. This is because their air sacs produce the loudest noises when heard from the side, and they want to impress the females!
Sage grouse chicks are almost completely self-sufficient soon after birth, which is especially remarkable because the eggs are incubated for only three weeks.