Greater Sage-Grouse Lek 2023

Spring Greater Sage-Grouse

Male Greater Sage-Grouse displaying on the lek.

I had the chance to spend last weekend (4-8/9-2023) with the Greater Sage-Grouse out on their lek in Central Montana. As always, we had an awesome time. There were a little over 40 grouse on the lek which I would say is about average. So that was good to see, being a species of concern, I always worry that some spring I am going to see a decline in their numbers.

The first morning out was fairly cool and we had fairly cloudy skies at sunrise. I am always hoping for at least a little bit of direct sunlight in the morning to help and get some more detailed shots of the birds. We did eventually get a little sun peaking through near the end of the morning, so that was good. We ended up being positioned just a little farther away than I had hoped. While the lek is always in the same general location year to year, where exactly the birds are going to be is always a little bit of a mystery. 

Male Greater Sage-Grouse backlit by the morning sun.

The second morning was very dusty on the lek and we had kind of hazy skies, so it made for some interesting conditions to photograph in. I had also positioned myself a little differently on the lek the second morning hoping to get some backlit birds, as I always like that look when it works out. I would say with the conditions being what they were, it was probably a little bit good and a little bit bad.  

I walked away with a few pictures I was happy with, but I don’t think I created anything new this year that was better than previous years. If you are new to my blog, you can look back at these older posts from years past for some comparison. Sage Grouse March 2021, Sage Grouse April 2021, and Sage Grouse April 2022.

I was primarily shooting with my Canon R5 with the Canon EF 600mm F4 version 2 lens with and without the Canon 1.4x version 3 teleconverter. I also took a few shots with my Canon R6 and the Canon RF 100-500 lens. Please checkout the gallery below for more of the photos from the weekend.

After the first morning out with the sage-grouse I decided to go look for some Ruffed Grouse. Winter has been lingering here in Montana this year, so I was not really able to get into the spots I was hoping to, because the snow was still too deep. I did eventually find a single ruffed grouse, but it was not interested in displaying for me. I am hoping later this spring to maybe get out and try again. 

Ruffed Grouse.

Greater Sage-Grouse Lek, April 2022

Over the weekend of April 2-3, 2022 I was able to visit one of my favorite Greater Sage-Grouse Leks in Central Montana. It is always one of my favorite trips to make in the spring. The first morning I went out was not as productive as the second. As always, I still had a great time, but there were clouds in the sky and I was also not setup quite in the right spot for the best viewing of the grouse on the lek. The second morning I had some amazing sunlight right at sunrise and I was also in a better position for some closer pictures of the grouse.

Male Greater Sage-Grouse displaying on the lek, with the first morning sun rays shining through his feathers.

A close up portrait of a male Greater Sage-Grouse with his tail feathers glowing in the morning sun.

A profile picture of a male Greater Sage-Grouse displaying at sunrise on the lek.

The only downside to these trips are the early mornings. I have about an hour and a half drive from my sister’s house in Lewistown to the lek. Sunrise this time of year is before 7 AM, and you need to be out there about an hour before sunrise. All I can say is 4AM comes all too early. Luckily I have time to consume a lot of coffee on the drive over. I have considered staying the night closer to the lek, but in early spring the nights are still pretty cold and there is not a lot of protection on the open prairie if the weather comes in.

This year there were about 70 grouse on the lek and that was encouraging to see. Those numbers are slightly higher than the last couple of years. With the Greater Sage-Grouse being a species of concern, I am always happy to see when they are having a good year. Hopefully we have a good spring so chick recruitment will be as high as possible.

Most of my photography and videography were done with my Canon R5, Canon 600 mm F4 ii and I had some help at times with my Canon 1.4x iii teleconverter. I was also using a Manfroto fluid video head instead of my gimble head. I was also using my Rode Video Mic Pro+ for capturing the audio. I had recently upgraded the firmware and that seemed to be causing me some issue on my R5. If they do not put out a new firmware soon, I may have to consider reverting to an older firmware. I was able to work around if for the most part, but it was causing my camera to occasionally lock up.

Portrait of male Greater Sage-Grouse.

A close up picture of all of the details in the tail feathers.

I am not sure if I will get another trip out for Greater Sage-Grouse or not. I still want to get out to a Sharp-Tailed Grouse lek and maybe try something new this year and find some mountain grouse during their spring rituals.

Two male Greater Sage-Grouse fighting over their position on the lek.

Two male Greater Sage-Grouse on the lek. You get to see the front and the back of the grouse.

A male Greater Sage-Grouse with his large yellow air sacks full of air on full display.

A relaxed (non displaying) male Greater Sage-Grouse.