Sooty Grouse
(Dendragapus fuliginosus)

Summary

Picture of bird
© Walter Siegmund - License
For additional photos and vocalizations, visit Dendroica. (Link opens in a new window.)

The Sooty Grouse is a large forest-dwelling grouse that occurs in the coastal forests of British Columbia. Until 2006, the Sooty Grouse and the similar Dusky Grouse were considered subspecies of Blue Grouse (D. obscurus). Breeding Bird Survey results suggest that Sooty Grouse populations in Canada have decreased by some 55% relative to about 1970. The Sooty Grouse is a candidate wildlife species for assessment by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC). This species has been identified as a priority for conservation and/or stewardship in one or more Bird Conservation Region Strategies in Canada.

Designations

Listing of the main designations for the species
DesignationStatusDateSubspecies, population
IUCN (Global)Least Concern2012 
Partners in Flight (North America)Stewardship List, Watch List Species2012 
Wild Species (Canada)Sensitive2010 
Bird Conservation Region StrategyPriority Species2013 

Population status

Geographic areaStatusReliability
CanadaLarge DecreaseMedium
 

Population estimate

Canada50,000 to 500,000 adults
 

Distribution maps

 

Migration strategy, occurrence

Resident

Responsibility for conservation of world population

CanadaHigh

Conservation and management

The Sooty Grouse is hunted in most areas with road access. The species lives in forests but often shows temporary, local increases in density following clear-cut logging (Niederleitner 1987). These densities decline as the canopy closes and remain low until the forest matures and natural canopy openings are created (Zwickel and Bendell 1985). The long-term effect of these fluctuations remains unknown (Zwickel and Bendell 2005).

 

Bird conservation region strategies

Environment and Climate Change Canada and partners have developed Bird Conservation Region Strategies in each of Canada’s Bird Conservation Regions (BCRs). In these strategies, selected species are identified as priorities for one or more of the following reasons:

  • conservation concerns (i.e., species vulnerable due to population size, distribution, population trend, abundance, or threats)
  • stewardship responsibilities (i.e., species that typify the regional avifauna or have a large proportion of their range or population in the sub-region)
  • management concerns (i.e., species that require ongoing management because of their socio-economic importance as game species, or because of their impacts on other species or habitats)
  • other concerns (i.e., species deemed a priority by regional experts for other reasons than those listed above or because they are listed as species at risk or concern at the provincial level)

Select any of the sub-regions below to view the BCR strategy for additional details.

BCRs, marine biogeographic units, and sub-regions in which the species is listed as a priority
RegionSub-region and priority type
Northern Pacific RainforestNorthern Pacific Rainforest, sub-region and priority type: Pacific and Yukon Region
 

References