Hiding somewhere in the sagebrush on a wide-open area were dozens of sage grouse. It was dark. So dark it seemed you can see nearly every star.
“That’s the seven sisters, the little, little dipper, next to the bull Orion’s shooting at,” Todd Stansbery pointed to the sky.
It was cold. And it was quiet.
Perfect conditions for these researchers to find sage grouse hens.
“Actually let me just show you what we’re doing,” said Lindsey Perry. She’s a doctoral student at Oregon State University and a colleague of Stansbery, a field technician with the university.
Zach Slick shines a spotlight to look for the glimmer of sage grouse eyes. He’s helping out with research that is looking into how ravens are affecting imperiled sage grouse.
Courtney Flatt/NWPB/EarthFix
“The other day we saw a bunch of males,” she said, pointing to her GPS device. “We’re only collaring females. So we’re just going to try a different path to try to cover more ground.”
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