April 2023 - 41

When I worked in the Green River Region
several years ago, sage grouse lek surveying was
a large part of my spring workload - so much
that I scheduled my wedding date before it
started that particular year. I missed doing it
after taking on different duties in Laramie and
then Cheyenne. The biologist who conducted
the first two of these counts at a lek in the
Laramie Region was unable to make it for the
third survey of the season. So, I volunteered to
make the " sacrifice " and finish up the surveys
that spring.
Surveying a lek is not easy. Spring weather,
sloppy-to-impassable roads, birds not cooperating
on a particular morning and many
other complications can play a part in success
or failure. That is the reason many leks are
surveyed three times each spring - to get one
good count. In this case, I volunteered to count
at a lek I had not visited before. Getting up
early enough to drive, mostly in the dark, and
arriving at what can only be generously called
first light was the first challenge. The second
was locating the lek. I had directions and a
general idea where it should be, but I was not
familiar with the road and land directly around
that site so that added a degree of difficulty.
If there's one good thing to be said about
sage grouse and other lekking birds when trying
to locate them - they can be noisy. Under
the ideal conditions of calm winds and direct
line-of-sight, I have heard lekking activity
from more than a mile away. After arriving
in the predawn obscurity on that early May
morning, the first thing I did was roll down
the window to listen.
SURPRISE SONG
The first week of May is a time of transition
on the high-elevation sagebrush steppe. Yes,
the strong winter storms are past but it can still
snow, and except for in the very dry winters
there are still snow drifts in the ravines. Some
grasses are greening up, but most plants are
Surveying a lek is not
easy. Spring weather,
sloppy-to-impassable
roads, birds not
cooperating on a
particular morning
and many other
complications can
play a part in success
or failure.
Wyoming Wildlife | 41

April 2023

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of April 2023

April 2023 - 1
April 2023 - 2
April 2023 - 3
April 2023 - 4
April 2023 - 5
April 2023 - 6
April 2023 - 7
April 2023 - 8
April 2023 - 9
April 2023 - 10
April 2023 - 11
April 2023 - 12
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April 2023 - 14
April 2023 - 15
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April 2023 - 18
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April 2023 - 46
April 2023 - 47
April 2023 - 48
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