Autumn lek urge of grouse cocks
Photo: Arne Ader
Translation: Liis
Lek posture of grouse cock in October
Grouse; black grouse Teder Tetrao tetrix
In October mornings too an autumn bubbling of grouse cocks can be heard in the springtime lek sites. Only rarely a grouse hen appears in the lek site – boys’ games..
Ornithologists explain the autumn display thus: the daylight period is again as long as at the beginning of the spring leks in March, and this affects the sexual glands of the males, inducing lek behaviour; it also happens with other Gallinaceous bird species.
Just now we can meet these large impressive Galliformes birds – grouse and capercaillies - on smaller, undisturbed forest roads too, pecking at gravel stones. In their gizzards the little stones grind the ingested food. Until now they have been feeding on the ground on bog and forest berries but it is not a long time left before the change-over to a winter diet.
Grouse hen
Until there are berries left in wooded bogs feeding is on the ground but on changing over to bud food they head for new feeding areas
Tags: 
