We've talked about grouse before, they are just about a thing of the past in this area.

It was the 2nd week of buck season, my buddy Rick and I were out hunting. (Not Ric from here on the forum, but a different man.)

We'd hunted around in this one big cove most of the day, didn't amount to squat, and didn't see much either. Nobody else was hunting and we had over 4,000 acres of private land to play with, so we figured we'd try a different area.

Riding back across the top of the mountain, a grouse ran across the road. We were in Rick's buggy, I told him to hold up, I'll try to get a picture. She was standing there 15 feet from the buggy, and I did get several nice pictures. Rick and I were talking about it, that made 2 grouse that he's seen this season, and one for me.

I posted my best picture on my facebook thing, several of my friends commented. Three guys said that they'd flushed a couple or heard a couple of grouse drumming a year ago. Everyone else saying that it'd been years since they'd seen a grouse.

But one thing that I've really noticed this past fall and winter, we don't have many woodpeckers. From the little black and white speckled ones, on up. They are just not there, or very few.

Woodpeckers are about like chipmunks, you don't really notice them if they aren't there, until you realize that something is missing.

Here at work I've asked a dozen of 15 of my friends if they've been seeing any woodpeckers. I've had a couple guys tell me something like this: You know, now that I think about it, I don't recall seeing any.

But that's my observation. What are you guys finding?

Last week I haw a grouse perched on the cross bar of one of my marten boxes. I was on a dog sled and I met my wife, who was on skis, coming from the other way and told her about the grouse. At the truck she told me there were 6 other grouse near the one by the box.

I haven't seen a wood pecker in a while either. But the are fairly common.

I've seen a few woodpeckers this season, just not many. While I was typing the message above, there was a yellow bellied sapsucker in a tree out back. I've got a clump of deer fat hanging in the tree, it was pecking at it.

Yes, that would be nice to see 5 or 6 grouse in one day, not going to happen around here today.

We had another little snow, Saturday night, about 4 inches out of town. I did see a flock of robins yesterday. Got back home and had robins in the trees out back. I've got 20* now, so it'll be a while before they find any worms.

I have been saying this for 2 years now,The bird pop has really taken a toll on itself.
our grouse are few and far between,but we still manage to shoot a couple. I do have a pileated woodpecker that i see every now and then out back.I hear west nile virus could be some of the cause.

Search: West Nile virus in grouse.

I read a report a while back, if I'm not mistaken it came out of Pa. Not positive. But in the report or study, they estimated up to an 85% mortality rate during a grouse chicks first year, due to West Nile virus. If that's true, I don't see how they can survive.

About like our bobwhite quail. We just don't have any.

I remember the last covey of quail that I did see, was out checking traps and 25 or 30 ran across the farm lane. That's been 20 years ago. They are just a thing of the past anymore.

I read this in the news a few weeks ago, now we've got an Avian Flu going around in domestic birds. Last I heard it'd been detected in 3 states. We have lots of poultry growers in this area, so they've got all of their bio-security measures in place.

My brother grows chickens, pullets, unless it's really important, I'll stay away from the farm.

Here is a story I found yesterday, NPR news.

Since my first comment on this thread, the middle of February, I've counted 6 or 7 woodpeckers. 3 different kinds of woodpeckers.

https://www.npr.org/2022/04/09/1091491202/bird-flu-2022-avian-influenza-poultry-farms