Ruffled my feathers

[waoutdoorsman]

Went out grouse hunting this morning. I was working a two track that ran directly on top of this ridge, when i heard something large walking down the draw to my left. It was loud, this was not the twig snapping like a deer, it was not quiet at all. I have never seen a elk in this area, it could have been i suppose. So i sat listening to it, and it sounded like it was headed away from. I didn think much of it, about three hundred yards further i flush a grouse, it flies into a tree about 40 yds a way. Im thinking sweet, goin to get a grouse, i take another two steps and two more flush from the same area and land near the previous grouse, no i get excited i glass where the other two had just flushed and i didn see anything, so i move in for the kill and what do you know three more flush, it was insane. So now they are spread among the trees about 40 yds away from me (my attention shifted from the mystery noise i heard earlier to killin some grouse). I can here them up there squaking making all kinds of sounds, a couple flushed further down into the draw, then I spot one sitting on a branch directly in front of a large tree with a nice backstop, an easy job for the .22lr. Bang, the bird falls out of the tree. Its been a couple years since i have hunted grouse seriously, so i was excited, it took me a few minutes to find him, but i did, it was a average ruffed male. about this time his comrades have had enough and start taking off, further into the timber. i get back on the two track and shed my pack, and drape my grouse over the top of it and go maybe 30 yards further up it, when the noise i heard early is now head directly for me, i wasnt paying attention to wind as i was grouse hunting, but it was almost as if it had circled me. it sounds like it is maybe 50 yards away. So i yell, HEY! and it speeds up! I can see some down falls bobbing up and down, as if something was jumping on it, I yell HEY! again, and it is still coming in, it was the typical western washington thick crap underbrush so i couldn see very well, needless to say it was gettin a little too close for comfort. I slowly backed out of the area, i could hear following me from a distance, it followed me for maybe 100 yds before it lost interest, I have no idea what it was, but it was exciting, im going back tomorrow
oh yeah no story is good without pics, heres one of the grouse, and one of what he was eatin
 

[waoutdoorsman]

heres one of the ruffy

[Michelle_Nelson]

Someone dump a dog?  Dog following you?

[bobcat]

Looks like a blue grouse to me. Do you have any more pictures?

[waoutdoorsman]

Heres another, it was a ruff, that was kind of a weird angle in that last pic. I was hoping to practice a fan mount like for turkeys, but it just didn have the feathers to do it.

[bobcat]

That's a blue grouse. It's easy to tell if you look at the tips of the tail feathers. Also the legs are different than a ruffed grouse. What elevation were you at?

[waoutdoorsman]

There are blues in the area, usually a little bit higher up on the ridge. Is it possible it could be a hybrid? I dont know about there molting patterns, he was missing some tail feathers. I thought the tail feathers were a lil weird for a ruffed, but it had smaller barred feathers like a ruff at the base of the tail. I dont know the exact elevation, ill have to look it up

[bobcat]

I think it's probably just an immature blue grouse. Probably only 3 months old.

[waoutdoorsman]

That could be, im going to go back tomorrow to find his friends for further investigation 
I also thought it was weird it didnt have the black shoulder patch that the male ruffs have.
i have his tail feathers, and wings drying, ill take close ups of them later. But he had the spikey feathers on top of his head. All i know is he is going to be tastey 

[bobcat]

If you had a ruffed grouse to lay next to that one, you'd see the differences are obvious. Did you open up the crop to see what it had been eating? I always check that right away. Gives me a good idea where to look for more.

[DOUBLELUNG]

Yep. definitely a young of the year male blue grouse.

[waoutdoorsman]

Now im curious, Ive only seen a handful adult blue grouse, they were pretty distinguishable from the ruffed, is it common for the young ones to have barred feathers, heres a close up of the tail and wing, i just assumed the barred feathers and the orangy color of the bird it looked like a typical ruff

[waoutdoorsman]

and the tail feathers, the v notch would suggest a young bird

[DOUBLELUNG]

The barred feathers are the juvenile plumage.  The hens retain that barring, but do get a little grayer.  On the tail, the barred feathers are his juvie feathers which he was molting out of, the ones on the sides are adult feathers coming in.  You are absolutely right about the notch indicating this year's hatch bird, adults - and some late season juvs - will have a full fan.

[MtnMuley]

Definately a young blue.  Tail feathers and gray breast are a dead give away.