News Release

Public invited to join ranger-led programs to observe strutting sage grouse in Grand Teton National Park

NPS Photo/C. Adams

News Release Date: April 12, 2022 MOOSE, WY— The public is invited to join park rangers on early-morning tours to observe strutting sage grouse, as they perform their annual mating dance on a historic lek near Mormon Row in Grand Teton National Park. Ranger-led grouse strut programs will be offered Saturday, April 23, Sunday, April 24, and Saturday, April 30. Advanced reservations are required.

Programs will begin at the Craig Thomas Discovery and Visitor Center at 5:30 a.m. To make an advanced reservation and for more information, please call 307-739-3399 or speak with a ranger at the Craig Thomas Discovery and Visitor Center, now open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily.

Ranger-led grouse strut programs offer a unique opportunity to witness greater sage grouse congregate and perform animated mating displays by males during the breeding season. This behavior occurs each spring, when multiple males gather in open areas called leks. During this time, males use their tail feathers and expandable air sacs under their throats to compete with other males for optimum position on the lek and the attention of females. Rangers will provide information about sage grouse and conservation efforts underway for populations that are declining throughout much of the American West.