Ruffed Grouse

[_X7]

6 minutes ago, Bucksnbows said:

Sort of.....I'm involved as well.  The idea is to create enough early successional forest habitat to bring their numbers back, either by increasing existing populations still here or by trap and transfer from other states.  Sussex County so far is where those efforts are focused.  A little in Morris as well (Berkshire Valley WMA).  We just need to be doing a LOT more forestry work to create new habitat and improve forest health at the same time.

 

Great pix, LittleM. 

Yes, that is the same information that I got. Improving forest health will be a task that is long overdue.

Great photos LittleM

[fab]

I would think with all the blow downs we had from sandy and the storms that followed we would have some new growth coming in 

 

 

[smittty]

36 minutes ago, Bucksnbows said:

Sort of.....I'm involved as well.  The idea is to create enough early successional forest habitat to bring their numbers back, either by increasing existing populations still here or by trap and transfer from other states.  Sussex County so far is where those efforts are focused.  A little in Morris as well (Berkshire Valley WMA).  We just need to be doing a LOT more forestry work to create new habitat and improve forest health at the same time.

 

Great pix, LittleM. 

They better have a plan to combat predation or nothing will work. And not just fur are birds of pray here in nj is out of control. I live in the suburbs and can’t let my pigeons fly for a day without one or two of them getting killed by some sort of bird of pray. Every year it gets worse 

[Bucksnbows]

37 minutes ago, fab said:

I would think with all the blow downs we had from sandy and the storms that followed we would have some new growth coming in 

 

 

Sandy didn’t do much to mature forests where grouse live or lived. For example, I lost three trees, all oaks, during Sandy and that’s on 107 acres. Two of those three oaks were atop of a rocky ledge and didn’t have deep roots. Three trees doesn’t make a difference in that situation. 

[gypsy]

My favorite game bird believe it or not in Old Bridge by the old Nike base off Rt 9 held a lot of grouse

[Bucksnbows]

21 minutes ago, smittty said:

They better have a plan to combat predation or nothing will work. And not just fur are birds of pray here in nj is out of control. I live in the suburbs and can’t let my pigeons fly for a day without one or two of them getting killed by some sort of bird of pray. Every year it gets worse 

Goshawks and great horned owls are the main avian predators to the ruffed grouse. Add fox, bobcat, coyote to that list plus egg raiders like raccoon, opossum and skunks and few of those are seeing any predator control. The birds of prey are protected. Same for bobcat.  Biology 101 tells us that the predator- prey balance will take care of itself if the habitat is there. Right now we lack that habitat. 

[smittty]

12 minutes ago, Bucksnbows said:

Goshawks and great horned owls are the main avian predators to the ruffed grouse. Add fox, bobcat, coyote to that list plus egg raiders like raccoon, opossum and skunks and few of those are seeing any predator control. The birds of prey are protected. Same for bobcat.  Biology 101 tells us that the predator- prey balance will take care of itself if the habitat is there. Right now we lack that habitat. 

I will agree to disagree. I disagree we need habitat but will agree we lack proper habitat logging is and has been a thing of the past big problem as is trapping  also I see know reason to protect certain birds of pray such as the copper hawks 

Edited December 27, 2022 by smittty

[archer36]

Years ago when I hunted in Long Valley you could flush about a half dozen birds in a 4 hour hunt. 

When I was in Newfoundland in 2008, they were very plentiful. Hung around logging roads. You could practically run them over with the 4 wheeler. The Guide told me the cook would take a limit every day and go home with dozens when the season was over. 

[Jerzguy2]

One of my favorite spots on Schooley's Mtn. in the 70's , put up 9 or 10 in a couple of hours.. It's now covered with parking lots and soccer fields. Very poor Grouse habitat now. 

[archer36]

3 hours ago, Jerzguy2 said:

One of my favorite spots on Schooley's Mtn. in the 70's , put up 9 or 10 in a couple of hours.. It's now covered with parking lots and soccer fields. Very poor Grouse habitat now. 

That's where I hunted them. Across the road from Schooly's.