Male ruffed grouse spring drumming surveys confirm the hunted population is, as anticipated, trending down toward an expected low point during their normal nine-to-11 year cycle.

This downward trend, again as expected, is likely to continue before bottoming out and finally reaching another peak around 2029, 2030, or 2031 according Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources wildlife biologists.

Two things of note are that the peaks during past decades have continued to be lower, suggesting there are fewer and fewer birds than years ago especially in southern Wisconsin.

A few hunters recall some of those peaks that were truly the good old days.

The better ruffed grouse habitats continue to be in the northern half of the state with the far south continuing to dip to the point of the bird receiving little hunting or birding attention.

Spring drumming sounds are rare in many areas in the south. Seeing a bird is even rarer. An occasional bird is heard and with the biggest news coming when a male grouse becomes extremely territorial and appears to befriend a hunter, even a deer hunter, and shows no fear, then pecks to the point of drawing blood from a hunter’s cheek all the while in an enclosed tree stand. This occurred during the 2022 gun deer season in Iowa County.

Spring drumming counts are now concentrated in three areas, Northern, Central and Driftless priority areas. The southern part of the state is no longer a monitoring area for roadside listening points.

Hunters and birders may, however, expect to see and hear a ruffed grouse during an autumn outing, now and then.  In fact, male birds drum at other times of the year and hunters often listen for birds drumming during September and October while hunting and hiking.

There continue to be some bright spots and should not surprise birders of all types.  In fact of the 52 survey routes in the Northern Area, 24 showed decreases in drums while 13 had increasing drums compared to 2022 levels. Twenty-one routes showed no change.

While the statewide figures were down 11 percent, the Northern area had a nine percent decrease, with the Driftless Area coming in at negative 14 percent, compared to minus 26 percent for the Central Area.

Another Wisconsin grouse, the sharp-tailed one, while showing a slight increase in populations, will not be open to hunting in 2023.

Spring waterfowl breeding surveys indicated stable population numbers and habitat conditions for migratory birds.

Pheasant crowing counts (wild birds) were below the five-year average. This decrease was expected.

As with all surveys, observations and hunting experiences, wildlife is not evenly distributed, even in the best of habitat and hunting conditions.  Scientific data collection and reporting usually provide averages over wide areas.

— Jerry Davis is an Argyle native and a freelance writer who lives in Barneveld. He can be reached at sivadjam@mhtc.net or at 608-924-1112.

MADISON — The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) recently announced that data is now available from annual spring surveys of Wisconsin ruffed grouse, pheasant and waterfowl.

The spring waterfowl breeding survey indicated stable population numbers and habitat conditions for migratory birds. In contrast, the spring surveys showed ruffed grouse and pheasant counts below the 5-year average, including an 11% decrease statewide in ruffed grouse drumming activity from 2022.

The decreases observed in the ruffed grouse and pheasant populations in this year’s surveys were not unexpected.

“We are entering the down phase of the 10-year abundance cycle,” said Brian Dhuey, DNR Wildlife Surveys Specialist. “It is likely we will continue to see some declines in abundance in the coming years before we start to see increases, with the peak of the next cycle likely coming around 2029, 2030 or 2031. While the number of birds detected is down overall, there will still be pockets of good ruffed grouse abundance, although these areas will be fewer and harder to find this fall.”

Pheasant populations are also down relative to historic averages. The department reported the 2023 average pheasant observations at 0.46 pheasants per stop, similar to 2022’s average of 0.47 pheasants per stop. The count remains below the most recent 5-year average of 0.55 pheasants per stop. While pheasant numbers are down statewide, abundance was markedly higher in the northwestern part of Wisconsin’s pheasant range than in the central or southeastern portions.

Similarly, wood duck populations decreased from 2022, although populations remain above the long-term average. The survey team also reported average to above-average wetland conditions across the state during the survey period.

Surveyors estimated the state’s breeding duck population at 545,065 birds, a 3.5% decrease from the 2022 estimate, yet 23.4% over the long-term average. Canada goose numbers are also slightly lower than 2022 yet remain 58.4% higher than the long-term average.

Conversely, The DNR’s annual breeding waterfowl survey showed stable numbers for mallards and blue-winged teal, two of the state’s primary breeding waterfowl. Highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) has not shown any measurable impacts this year on waterfowl populations at a statewide or continental scale, and we had excellent nesting conditions immediately after the survey. The dry conditions during the brood rearing period have not seemed to negatively impact brood success based on staff feedback.