Okaknowledgy – To The Beat of Their Own Drum

Join OLT for an evening talking all things grouse – with our conservation coordinator, Michelle Martin.

Michelle has spent her career prior to working at OLT researching avian behavior and conducting surveys for birds throughout the intermountain west. She completed her masters in Southern Alberta, Canada studying ruffed grouse (Bonasa umbellis) behavior, specifically variation in the ability of a grouse to communicate via the non-vocal drumming display during the breeding season based on time of day, month, and year. In her talk, Michelle will discuss her findings and the research that has been done on this species. 

However, the varied habitat types of Okanogan County are home to at least 6 species of grouse! In this talk, we will broadly discuss the life history of grouse species of the Okanogan. Enjoy an evening learning about the surprising uniqueness of the grouse clade- beloved by hunters and begging to be known by others!