Earlier this week I was able to sneak away early one morning for what will probably be my last lek morning of the year. It was a very pleasant way to close out the season. There was no wind, it was fairly warm for a late April morning and the sky was clear. I was back at a Sharp-tailed Grouse lek and there were probably close to forty birds stomping....
rattling....
cooing....
and fighting (lots of fighting) around me.
I also had a few other creatures besides the grouse join me at the lek. This Pronghorn wandered through, had a bite to eat on a sagebrush, scratched an itch, expressed his opinion, and wandered over the edge of the hill.
The Western Meadowlarks were also pretty active and singing vigorously from various perches around my blind.
On my way home I stopped by to check out the Mountain Bluebird nest boxes and found this guy.
* Here are some bonus photos from a morning at a different lek earlier this month.
6 comments:
Amazing photos!! Your post of these reminded me I have a bunch of Sharpie photos too from a few years ago. Guess I should post a few!!
Such great photos -- thank you!
John, Have you observed Sharptail up your way on no till fields after the spring chem burn off?
Your pictures are priceless...there are many birds on old pasture and old summer fallow fields....east of Kennedy..
steve Dunn
Would appreciate your report on
Sharptail on zerotill fields...
Thank you for caring about them...
Steve.hawaiianamedia@gmail.com
Steve, my impression is that sharptails will keep coming back to a lek even if the surface use changes, so if a lek that was on native prairie is plowed, they will continue to use that area unless it completely changes. So, yes I have observed them in fields no matter if they are no till, tilled, fallow or recently seeded.
John, thank you for your candid views....they coincide with my experience to the letter....after 40 years of visiting the prairie in the summer and fall....please see my email just sent...if you wish..
Regards,
Steve
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