Trip Report: Namekagon Barrens, April 2013

While feeling the effects of cabin fever during this past snowy January in Minnesota, I started researching some interesting subjects to photograph in the spring. I soon stumbled upon the beautifully odd and extremely entertaining sharp-tailed grouse of the Namekagon Barrens Wildlife Area in northwestern Wisconsin.
My research lead me to the Friends of the Namekagon Barrens Wildlife Area website, which is chuck full of good information about the pine and oak barrens habitat of Wisconsin, which covered approximately 4.1 million acres of the state prior to european settlement. Now, only 10,000 acres of pine and oak barrens remain in the state. Pine and oak barrens are prime habitat for sharp tailed grouse, and, with the disappearance of this and other prairie habitats, midwestern sharp-tailed grouse populations have experienced long-term population declines and are in possible danger of disappearing from the state.
barrens birds grouse lek namekagon sharp tailed grouse spring wisconsin
Luckily, the Namekagon Barrens preserves this unique habitat and specifically maintains the sharp-tailed grouse breeding grounds called 'Leks', where male sharp-tails perform their unique mating dances in an effort to win breeding rights to females. Friends of the Namekagon Barrens Wildlife Area kindly offers photography blinds at that can be reserved well in advance to provide front row seats to this amazing show!
barrens birds grouse lek namekagon sharp tailed grouse spring wisconsin
Since you are required to be inside the blind well before sunrise, I headed to the barrens a day early to scout out the area.
barrens birds grouse lek namekagon sharp tailed grouse spring wisconsin
The barrens is truly a unique landscape and not something you'd expect in northern Wisconsin.
barrens birds grouse lek namekagon sharp tailed grouse spring wisconsin
barrens birds grouse lek namekagon sharp tailed grouse spring wisconsin
At sunset, I was able to photograph these gnarled oak trees. I thought it was a perfect representation of the barrens.
barrens birds grouse lek namekagon sharp tailed grouse spring wisconsin
barrens birds grouse lek namekagon sharp tailed grouse spring wisconsin
After the sun had set, I enjoyed some dinner and headed to bed with my alarm set for 4 am.
barrens birds grouse lek namekagon sharp tailed grouse spring wisconsin
Sleeping in the back of a Chevy Malibu Maxx is surprisingly comfy!
Here is the inside of the blind. Its actually pretty cozy inside, with some nice padded bucket seats which are at a perfect hight for looking out of the windows of the blind.
barrens birds grouse lek namekagon sharp tailed grouse spring wisconsin
As soon as the sun started to come up, the sharp-tails gathered in the lek and began their singing and dancing.

Here is a short clip of some of their sounds and dancing. Please excuse my crude video captured with an iphone from the back of my D300 LCD. Someday I'll upgrade to a camera that captures video (Nikon, I'm still waiting for the D400...).
Namekagon Sharp Tails
barrens birds grouse lek namekagon sharp tailed grouse spring wisconsin
These guys are really a ton of fun to watch and the sounds they make don't even sound like they could be coming from an animal. The both look and sound like cartoons!
barrens birds grouse lek namekagon sharp tailed grouse spring wisconsin
barrens birds grouse lek namekagon sharp tailed grouse spring wisconsin
barrens birds grouse lek namekagon sharp tailed grouse spring wisconsin
Later in the morning, the birds started getting feisty!
barrens birds grouse lek namekagon sharp tailed grouse spring wisconsin
They would kick and flap and bite each other. There was some stiff competition out there!
barrens birds grouse lek namekagon sharp tailed grouse spring wisconsin
barrens birds grouse lek namekagon sharp tailed grouse spring wisconsin
barrens birds grouse lek namekagon sharp tailed grouse spring wisconsin
Overall, I really enjoyed my experience at the Namekagon Barrens and will definitely try to come back next year. This image is available for purchase HERE! Thanks again to the Friends of the Namekagon Barrens Wildlife Area for providing the opportunity to watch these amazing creatures!
barrens birds grouse lek namekagon sharp tailed grouse spring wisconsin Sharp tailed Strut