Wild Ruffed Grouse populations in the northern US and in Canada are widely believed to cycle up and down in approximately 7 year cycles. Have you seen any indications of this in captive grouse?
No, I haven’t seen any indication of population cycles in my captive Ruffed Grouse. I feel this makes sense, as many of the grouse professionals I’ve met at the WPA grouse symposiums believe that the cycles are caused by concurrent or preceding cycles in the bird’s predators and/or parasites, and possibly to some degree, even by availability of other prey species. Since a big part of successful captive breeding is controlling parasites and predators, it makes sense that such cycles would be reduced or eliminated. While this phenomenon doesn’t prove the cause of cycles, it demonstrates that they are probably caused by factors external to the birds themselves, removing some of the mystery.
Related Questions
- Wild Ruffed Grouse populations in the northern US and in Canada are widely believed to cycle up and down in approximately 7 year cycles. Have you seen any indications of this in captive grouse?
- Why is it that no one seems to be able to successfully establish a wild population of Ruffed Grouse using captive reared birds?
- Do ruffed grouse populations in New York follow "10-year cycles"?
