Conservation Status
1996 IUCN: Lower risk
(least concern)
CITES 1998: not listed in Appendices.
EU Birds Directive: Annex I, Annex II/2, Annex III/2
National red data books: listed in western and central European
countries.
Taxonomy
There are currently seven (del Hoyo et al. 1994) or eight (Potapov and Flint 1989) subspecies recognised, based on geographic variation in morphological traits. Only the British subspecies T. t. britannicus is geographically isolated.
Distribution
Northern Eurasia. Continuous distribution in the boreal forest from Scandinavia to south-eastern Siberia (approx. 140° East); the western and southern parts of the range are fragmented; here, major range contractions and declines have occurred during the 20th century (see Klaus et al. 1990, Bergmann and Klaus 1994).
Population size and trend
Population densities may strongly fluctuate, particularly in the northern parts of the range where 4-10 year population cycles are common. Except for these short-term fluctuations, black grouse populations are more or less stable throughout the contiguous range, and are not particularly endangered. Outside this range, in western and central Europe, black grouse numbers have been declining rapidly during this century, and particularly since the 1970s. Many lowland populations have disappeared, and the remaining ones are mostly small (<100-200 birds) and isolated (Klaus et al. 1990, Niewold 1990, Holst-Jörgensen 1995, Loneux and Ruwet 1997). In central Europe, the largest and still mostly stable population is found in the Alps (see Klaus et al. 1990).
Habitat and ecology
The black grouse is one of the grouse species with the broadest habitat requirements. In the boreal regions, the black grouse is a bird of forest edge habitats and of early stages of forest succession. Outside the boreal forest, black grouse are found in structurally similar habitats such as moorland and heaths, young and open regenerating conifer forests after disturbances such as fire, storm, or clearcutting, treeline habitats and alpine pastures in mountainous areas, as well as fields and meadows, and military training grounds. Black grouse generally avoid closed tree cover. The birds feed opportunistically but selectively on a variety of food items. The hens require a protein and energy-rich food source in the pre-laying period in spring, and utilise the inflorescences of cotton grass Eriophorum spp., buds of Larix, Alnus, Betula spp., and leaves, buds and flowers of ericaceous shrubs and herbs such as Ranunculus spp. and Caltha palustris. In summer, black grouse need habitats with abundant invertebrates for chicks, preferably larvae and ants and utilise wet flushes. In winter, black grouse feed on shrubs such as Vaccinium, Calluna, and Juniperus and, if these are snow-covered, they rely on catkins, buds, twigs, and needles of various tree species, especially birch, alder, and willow, but also spruce and pine.
The quality, size, and distribution of suitable habitat patches explain most of the observed variation in black grouse abundance. Black grouse population dynamics are characterised by greater fluctuations and greater mobility compared to other woodland grouse species. Therefore, exchange between neighbouring populations and the colonisation of new habitats may be more likely than in capercaillie or hazel grouse. However, there is still a lack of data to test this hypothesis, and more research on the spatial dynamics of black grouse populations is needed (see Klaus et al. 1990, Office National de la Chasse 1994 a,b, Baines 1995).
Hunting and cultural importance
The courtship display of the male black grouse has long fascinated humans; e.g. it is mimicked in traditional Alpine folk dances and today attracts bird-watchers and wildlife photographers to the leks. Throughout most of its range, the black grouse has a long history as a game bird, and therefore is of great cultural, and at least regionally, economic importance. After willow ptarmigan and hazel grouse, it is the most numerous grouse species in the bag of Fennoscandian and Russian hunters (see Potapov and Flint 1989, Klaus et al. 1990). For Russia the annual hunting bag of black grouse has been estimated as 120,000 in the early 1990s (Flint 1995, Grabuzov 1995).
In the northern and eastern parts of the range, black grouse are mostly hunted in winter, often with the help of dummies to attract flocks. There are also several kinds of traps for black grouse. The species is hunted for both sport and food in northern Europe, and primarily for meat in eastern Europe and Russia. In recent times, trophy-hunting by westerners is gaining increasing economic importance in eastern Europe. In central Europe, trophy-hunting used to be the black grouse hunter´s major motivation, and males were shot in spring at the lek. This kind of hunting involves a high risk of disturbing the social system at the lek, and may result in reduced reproductive success. In some areas, hunting may have contributed to a rapid decline of black grouse populations. Since the 1970s, black grouse hunting has been banned in some central European countries, but bans did not reverse the negative population trends. A present-day modification of the traditional hunt is the attractiveness of black grouse leks to nature photographers and bird-watchers, who locally may cause significant disturbance. Because of the pronounced, often unpredictable fluctuations of black grouse populations, attempts at harvesting a maximum yield can easily lead to overshooting. Data on current stocks and annual reproductive success can minimise this problem. (See Potapov and Flint 1989, Klaus et al. 1990, Ellison 1991.)
Principal threats
Habitat degradation. In western and central Europe, habitat loss due to changes in human land-use, and particularly the intensification of agriculture, is the major cause of black grouse declines (e.g. Niewold 1990, Loneux and Ruwet 1997). Drainage and destruction of moorland, fertilisation or afforestation of heathland and sheep pastures, and the declining use and maintenance of alpine summer pastures by grazing and mowing are common causes of the deterioration of black grouse habitats. Destruction of ground vegetation and associate invertebrate communities due to heavy grazing by livestock or deer can also have negative effects on black grouse populations (Baines 1994, 1996).
Small population size. In western and central Europe, deterioration and fragmentation of habitats have resulted in isolated populations, many of which are now threatened by small size (Loneux and Ruwet 1997). Small populations of e.g. <100 birds are generally vulnerable and show a high risk of extinction due to chance demographic or environmental events such as unsuitable weather, and possibly also reduced genetic variability (Westemeier et al. 1998). Habitat preservation measures need to be initiated well before a population on the verge of extinction. The size and spatial distribution of suitable habitats at a landscape scale needs much more attention than they have received in the past.
Predation. Related to large-scale land-use changes, predation pressure on black grouse seems to have significantly increased during the past three decades. Forest fragmentation, farmland fertilisation, availability of garbage as a food source, and declining persecution have resulted in increasing densities of small and medium-sized mammalian and avian predators (Reynolds 1990). In addition, large-scale vaccination of foxes against rabies in central Europe since the 1980s may have contributed to constantly high fox populations (Vos 1995). Locally, increasing populations of wild boar have perhaps become a major cause of grouse nest losses.
Human disturbance. Tourism and leisure activities such as hiking, skiing, mountain-biking, etc. may pose serious threats to local black grouse populations. Particularly in the mountainous regions of western and central Europe, many black grouse wintering habitats overlap with popular skiing areas. (See e.g. Meile 1982, Ménoni and Magnani 1998, Zeitler and Glänzer 1998.)
Exploitation. In some countries (Austria, China, Greece, Romania, Switzerland, Ukraine) exploitation by legal and illegal hunting was reported as a potential threat to black grouse populations.
Collisions. In Scandinavia, collisions with high-tension power lines may kill significant numbers of black grouse , e.g. >26,000 annually have been estimated in Norway (Beveranger 1995). In Scotland, many birds die from collisions with deer fences (Baines and Summers 1997).
Research needs
In general, the biology, food habits, habitat and spatial requirements, behaviour and mating system of the black grouse are well understood (see Baines 1995, Klaus et al. 1990). Because black grouse are still widely hunted, better understanding of population dynamics and the effects of harvesting are desirable. More information is needed about the effects of habitat fragmentation and patch isolation. Information is almost completely lacking on dispersal rates and distances and their role for population connectivity and population dynamics and persistence. Larger-scale habitat relationships and population dynamics can be considered as the research topics with the greatest relevance to conservation in regions where the species is endangered. Experiments in management are a great research need.
Current conservation measures
Legal protection. The degree of legal protection varies among the range countries. In general, the species is fully and effectively protected in western and central European countries with small and declining populations. In other countries, e.g. Austria, Italy, and France, hunting is strictly regulated and only allowed in certain areas and during limited hunting seasons. Illegal hunting still appears to be a problem in some regions.
Protected areas. Only a minor proportion of the species´ range is covered by protected areas, and most are probably too small to support self-sustaining, viable populations. The role of protected areas for black grouse conservation is generally considered to be limited. Locally, however, reserves are seen as vital for black grouse conservation: In Belgium, the Netherlands, and northern Germany, most remaining populations are in nature reserves (or military training grounds, which have similar effects), which are considered to be critical for their survival. In regions where poaching is seen as a problem, e.g. China and Greece, reserves are also believed to be important for black grouse conservation.
Surveys and monitoring. In Europe, regular surveys or monitoring are common as a means of harvest planning e.g. in Austria, Fennoscandia, France, and the UK, and in regions with small remnant populations, e.g. in Belgium, Netherlands, and in parts of Germany.
Habitat preservation. Habitat management is considered the most important conservation measure for black grouse. In most regions, the major challenge is to integrate land-use practices with the species´ habitat requirements. Measures include habitat improvement by maintaining the open habitats of early succession stages.
Reduction of human disturbance. Disturbance by tourism and leisure activities such as hiking, skiing, mountain-biking, snow-shoeing, and snow-machines are viewed as a serious threat to local populations. Disturbance can be critical in winter habitats, at the lek, and during brood rearing (see 2.6.5). In some regions of Europe, programmes to limit the effects of human disturbance on black grouse have been initiated (e.g. Austria, France, Germany, Switzerland). The major approaches are public awareness campaigns, re-routing of hiking and ski-trail networks, and designation of core areas closed to the public. (See e.g. Ménoni and Magnani 1998, Zeitler and Glänzer 1998.)
Predator control. In most regions of Europe with small and highly endangered populations, predation is experienced as the major proximate threat to the black grouse, and to many conservation practitioners, predator control seems to be desirable (e.g. Kaphegyi 1998). A significant reduction of predators will probably result in improved back grouse survival (see Reynolds 1990). To maintain low predator densities on a large scale, however, is technically difficult and ethically questionable, and not easily accepted by the public. Therefore, in most areas predator control cannot be a sustainable approach to black grouse conservation (Kaphegyi 1998).
Captive breeding and release. Captive breeding of black grouse has made significant progress over the past two decades. In Germany, four different captive breeding and release projects have been undertaken during the past 20 years; none was successful. They failed mainly due to high mortality from predation among newly released birds, which may be partly related to rearing and releasing techniques. However, major losses, fragmentation, and/or degradation of habitats preceded all cases of serious population declines or extinctions of black grouse in central Europe; in addition, predation pressure has significantly increased during the past few decades. The prospects for re-establishing lowland populations in central Europe appear to be limited mainly by small size of habitat patches and high predation pressure, and only secondarily by suboptimal rearing and release techniques (see Klaus and Bergmann 1994).
Priority conservation measures
Habitat management. Preservation and restoration of the habitat is the major approach for the conservation of endangered black grouse populations. In areas with ongoing habitat degradation, integration of land-use practices with the species´ habitat requirements is essential.
Maintaining spatial connectivity. In the southwestern part of the range where black grouse habitats are spatially fragmented, maintaining or restoring spatial connectivity among the populations, e.g. in the Alps, seems to be vital. The recent history of black grouse in central Europe teaches us that once populations have become small and isolated in an intensively farmed landscape, the chances for population restoration are poor (see Loneux and Ruwet 1997, Westemeier et al. 1998). Preventative measures are needed for the remaining larger populations and metapopulation systems.
Reduction of human disturbance. In areas with small, declining, or threatened populations, human disturbance due to sport and leisure activities should be minimised, particularly where wintering, display, moult, and brood habitats are limited.
Monitoring. Where the species is endangered, sound monitoring programmes of populations and habitats should be established to document population trends and response to management actions.
Law enforcement. Locally, where the species appears to be threatened by poaching, better law enforcement is needed (see above).
Correspondents
David Baines, Ariane Bernard-Laurent, Massimo Bocca, Ayurzanyn Bold, Miran Cas, Roman Dziedzic, Volodymyr Domashlinets, Laurence Ellison, Michael Fasel, David Jenkins, Bo Holst-Jörgensen, Lazlo Kalaber, Wolfgang Kantner, Siegfried Klaus, Harto Lindén, Freek Niewold, Alexander Mikityuk, Pierre Mollet, Roald Potatpov, J.C. Ruwet, Athanassios Sfougaris, Torstein Storaas, Ilse Storch, Sun Yue-Hua, Anne Westerberg, Albin Zeitler.
Key publications
Baines, D. 1995. Habitat requirements of back grouse. Proc. Int. Symp. Grouse 6:147-150.
Bergmann H. H. and Klaus, S.1994. Distribution, status and limiting factors of black grouse in central Europe, particularly in Germany, including an evaluation of reintroductions. - Gibier Faune Sauvage 11:99-124.
Klaus, S., Bergmann, H.-H., Marti, C., Müller, F., Vitovic, O. A., and Wiesner, J. 1990. Die Birkhühner. Die Neue Brehm-Bücherei. Westarp Wissenschaften, Magdeburg, Germany.
Loneux, M. and Ruwet, J.C. 1997. Evolution des populations du Tétras lyre en Europe. Cahiers d´Ethologie 17:287-343.
Office National de la Chasse 1994. Plan de restauration pour quelque galliformes européens: gelinotte, grand tétras, tétras-lyre et perdix bartavelle &endash; tome 1. Gibier Faune Sauvage 11(1), 348 p.
Office National de la Chasse 1994. Restoration plans for some European galliformes: hazel grouse, capercaillie and black grouse; part 2. Gibier Faune Sauvage 11(2), 222 p.