The Greater Sage-Grouse inhabits the sagebrush lands in the western United States, and southern Alberta and Saskatchewan, Canada. This bird is a year-round permanent resident, and non-migratory. However, some may move to lower elevations during the winter. They forage for food on the ground, eating insects, sagebrush and other plants. Nests are built under sagebrushes on the ground. Numbers of the Greater Sage-Grouse have declined due to loss of their natural habitat, and is very susceptible to humid climates caused by global warming. The conservation rating of the Greater Sage-Grouse is Near Threatened.
Greater Sage Grouse: Largest North American grouse, has scaled gray-brown upperparts, white breast, black throat, bib, and belly, and yellow combs above eyes. Large, white collar-like patch on breast conceals two yellow air sacs displayed during courtship. Tail feathers are long and pointed.
Greater Sage Grouse: Resident from southern Alberta and Saskatchewan south to eastern California, Nevada, Colorado, and South Dakota. Preferred habitats include the open country and sagebrush plains.
"kuk-kuk-kuk"
Gary Owen Dick
Kavita Jhunjhunwala
The four letter common name alpha code is is derived from the first two letters of the common first name and the first two letters of common last name. The six letter species name alpha code is derived from the first three letters of the scientific name (genus) and the first three letters of the scientific name (species). See (1) below for the rules used to create the codes..
Four-letter (for English common names) and six-letter (for scientific names) species alpha codes were developed by Pyle and DeSante (2003, North American Bird-Bander 28:64-79) to reflect A.O.U. taxonomy and nomenclature (A.O.U. 1998) as modified by Supplements 42 (Auk 117:847-858, 2000) and 43 (Auk 119:897-906, 2002). The list has been updated by Pyle and DeSante to reflect changes reported by the A.O.U from 2003 through 2006.
The Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS) was established in the mid-1990�s as a cooperative project among several federal agencies to improve and expand upon taxonomic data (known as the NODC Taxonomic Code) maintained by the National Oceanographic Data Center (NODC), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
To find the ITIS page for a bird species go to the ITIS web site advanced search and report page at http://www.itis.gov/advanced_search.html. You can enter the TSN or the common name of the bird. It will return the ITIS page for that bird. Another way to obtain the ITIS page is to use the Google search engine. Enter the string ITIS followed by the taxonomic ID, for example "ITIS 178041" will return the page for the Allen's Hummingbird.