The collapse of the ruffed grouse has forced states like Ohio, Indiana, and New Jersey to shut down hunting seasons to protect dwindling populations. Rising temperatures and milder winters have allowed virus-carrying mosquitoes to invade traditionally safe, high-altitude habitats across New York and Pennsylvania. In Ohio, hunter drumming surveys for the species have plunged to under 1% of the figures recorded in the early 1980s. The continued decline also threatens Appalachian communities that rely heavily on hunting expenditures.
Key points
Expanding ranges of West Nile virus driven by warmer climates are accelerating game bird…: Expanding ranges of West Nile virus driven by warmer climates are accelerating game bird declines in high altitudes.
Habitat loss and climate trends pose long-term risks to traditional grouse strongholds li…: Habitat loss and climate trends pose long-term risks to traditional grouse strongholds like Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin.
The reduction in grouse hunting activity damages rural Appalachian economies that benefit…: The reduction in grouse hunting activity damages rural Appalachian economies that benefit from hunting's nearly $2 billion impact in Ohio.
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Every November, hundreds of hunters descend on four designated wilderness areas in southern Ohio in pursuit of the elusive ruffed grouse.
But not this year.
Dispersed across an enormous range from the southern Appalachian mountains to Alaska, the ruffed grouse is one of the most popular game birds in North America. But for the first time since 1937, no open permits have been issued to the public to hunt ruffed grouse in Ohio due to falling numbers.
“Roadside drumming surveys suggest grouse numbers remain quite low across the species’ range in eastern and southern Ohio,” says Mark Wiley, forest gamebird biologist for the Ohio department of natural resources.
Actual ruffed grouse numbers are not recorded in Ohio, but hunters conducting drumming counts, which can provide a broad estimate, have fallen to less than 1% of the rate recorded in the early 1980s.
Six years ago, ruffed grouse was added to Indiana’s state endangered list, where it is thought to survive in just 12 counties. That state’s hunting season closed in 2015. Four years later, ruffed grouse hunting ended in New…
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