I’ve never seen a Sharp-tailed Grouse before and was really hoping to see one while I was here in Michigan before I go back east. To my surprise, while I was doing the count at Graham Point yesterday one flew right over my head and landed in the sand some 20ft from me and gave me some awesome views and photos. It moved into the brush and then wandered around the neighbor’s cut grass lawn for a few minutes before I lost sight of it. Calvin has been seeing them almost daily at Pointe LaBarbe for the past several days so they have been in the area but I was not expecting one at Graham Point! The bird must have adventured through people’s yards and flew over roads and highways to get to Graham Point all the while safely evading dogs, cars, and people. I never saw the bird fly off again but I did see the neighbor’s free-ranging dog come out 45min after I saw the grouse, so hopefully it was able to find a good place to hide.
eBird Checklist: https://ebird.org/checklist/S97023954
