Grandpa's Cabin Yellowstone Vacation Rental

The visit from a Ruffed Grouse to the cabin property last Thanksgiving made for some excitement to our dinner preparations. One of the younger children was looking out the window and became very excited about the “little turkey” in the yard. This brought the rest of the children to investigate the discovery.This started a debate as to whether it was really a “little” turkey. The adult experts were called in to settle the issue. It was confirmed that it was not a turkey but a male ruffed grouse in full display which looks a lot like the pictures you see of wild turkeys.

The ruffed grouse is a common bird that lives in open clearings in the woods during the summer and moves into the conifers during winters. The environment of the Greater Yellowstone National Park provides an excellent habitat for these beautiful birds. Males attract the females by displacing the patterns of the finely barred tail with its black terminal bands much the same way a turkey will. They also drum the air with rapidly beating wings. They feed on berries, leaves buds, seeds and insects.