Idaho's Mount Borah BLM>Idaho>Programs>Wildlife, Botany &
Forestry Print Page Sensitive Species   Greater Sage-grouse
Centrocercus urophasianus   male sage-grouse with tail fanned
Greater sage-grouse stand up to 2 feet tall and weigh between 2
and 7 pounds.  Females (hens) are smaller and mottled brown,
black and white.  Males are more colorful and have spiked tails
and large white ruffs around their necks.  Their most
distinctive feature may be bright yellow air sacs on the chest,
which they inflate during courtship displays.  female and male
sage-grouse in profile  The hens' less showy coloring helps hide
them from predators, especially when they have young to protect.
Chicks are precocial – their eyes are open when they hatch, and
they can leave the nest within 2 days.  Hatchlings are covered
in soft down feathers that also help camouflage them from
predators.   sage-grouse graphic element    sage-grouse life
cycle graphic - CLICK to enlarge   As their name suggests, sage-
grouse need sagebrush habitat t