Overview

I've conducted surveys and studies of Sooty Grouse for California Department of Fish and Game since 1982. I've also written the state's Management Plan for Forest Grouse, which includes the state's other forest grouse, Ruffed Grouse. My earliest work involved statewide surveys and an observation location database for Sooty Grouse. I then focused on the status of Mt Pinos Sooty Grouse in south-central California, and statewide collection of DNA for taxonomic studies. In 2006-09 I conducted an intensive field study near Pinecrest to characterize and model habitats of Sooty Grouse on the western slope of the Sierra Nevada Mountains, as well as refine census methodology. Currently, I am studying Sooty Grouse under the auspices of the Game Bird Research Group, developing a habitat distribution model for the Mendocino Region of California.