Ruffed grouse drumming counts up in northern and central Wisconsin regions, down in southwestern

Ruffed grouse drumming increased this spring in two of three priority areas and the species appears to be on the upward phase of its traditional 10-year population cycle in Wisconsin, according to the Department of Natural Resources.

The DNR's 2024 ruffed grouse drumming survey showed a 57% increase in drum counts statewide compared to 2023.

The year-over-year increase was 60% in the northern part of the state and 41% in the central region. However drumming decreased 56% in the Driftless Area of southwestern Wisconsin.

The ruffed grouse is a native Wisconsin species and popular upland hunting bird. It is dependent on young forest habitat typically created through logging or wildfire.

The species' population is tracked by counts of drumming males as they attempt to attract a mate in spring. The sound of the male rapidly beating its wings can be heard over long distances.

Several agencies and groups, including the DNR, U.S. Forest Service, Ruffed Grouse Society, tribal partners and volunteers, collect the data via roadside surveys of drumming grouse. The survey has been conducted in Wisconsin since 1964.

This year wildlife managers, wildlife technicians and other cooperators conducted surveys on 74 transects across the three priority areas.

The statewide increase was likely due to two factors, said Alaina Roth, DNR ruffed grouse specialist.

"The late spring and summer of 2023 were abnormally dry, which resulted in prime nesting and brooding conditions for ruffed grouse," Roth said in a statement. “We are also likely entering the ‘up’ phase of our 10-year population cycle, which may be an influencing factor, too.”

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources recently announced higher 2024 drumming counts in that state, too.

Ruffed grouse typically follow a 10-year population cycle, with peaks occurring in years that end in 0, 1 or 9. Recent data indicate ruffed grouse in Wisconsin are entering the upswing of the abundance cycle with the next peak expected in 2029, 2030 or 2031, according to the DNR.

Although the year-over-year results were positive in the north and central parts of the state, the long-term trend is not favorable for ruffed grouse in Wisconsin.

Due to aging forests and changing land use patterns, a general downward trend in the species has been documented over the decades. The birds are scarce or no longer present in some areas of the state they occupied just 30 years ago.

For example, the DNR in recent years discontinued ruffed grouse drumming surveys in southeastern Wisconsin due to very low grouse numbers.

And overall the drumming count highs are not as high as they have been in the past and the amplitude of the change from low to high seems to be decreasing, according to the DNR.

The state's Ruffed Grouse Management Plan, approved in 2019, seeks to avoid further declines.

Its goals include providing "adequate levels of early-successional forest habitat across a spectrum of age-class distributions to sustain a healthy and broadly-distributed ruffed grouse population" and "where suitable habitat exists or can feasibly be restored, sustain a healthy and broadly distributed ruffed grouse population in Wisconsin that provides hunting and other recreational opportunities."

The Ruffed Grouse Society has also initiated a project to quantify and assess ruffed grouse habitat in the state to help guide management actions for the species.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Ruffed grouse drumming counts up in northern and central Wisconsin regions, down in southwestern