sage grouse

noun

|Updated on: 21 Jul 2018

Definition of sage grouse

: either of two large grouses (Centrocercus urophasianus and C. minimus) of the dry sagebrush plains of western North America that have mottled gray and buff plumage above with a contrasting black belly

Recent Examples of sage grouse from the Web

Take the case of the greater sage grouse, that puffy-breasted bird of the West.

— peter s. alagona, Outside Online, "The Endangered Species Act Needs a Reboot," 9 July 2018
Between 200,000 and 500,000 sage grouse remain in 11 Western states, down from a peak population of about 16 million.

— Washington Post, "Forest Service proposes changes to sage grouse protections," 20 June 2018
The greater sage grouse continues to decline in the West.

— Washington Post, "Forest Service proposes changes to sage grouse protections," 20 June 2018
Male sage grouse already have a low bar for mating partners.

— laura yan, Popular Mechanics, "Scientists Made a Taxidermy Bird Robot for Research," 9 June 2018
Removing the juniper not only benefits sage grouse, but also mule deer, elk, pronghorn and golden eagles.

— cynthia sewell, idahostatesman, "Farewell, western juniper. Idaho, feds partner to yank the plant & let sagebrush return," 31 May 2018
The Interior Department is expected to amend the greater sage grouse plans later this year, but the regulatory process is likely to take years.

— lauren katz, Vox, "Ryan Zinke spent his first year in office selling off rights to our public lands," 16 Mar. 2018
The report noted that sage grouse once occupied about 463,000 square miles (1.2 million square kilometers), but that's now down to about 260,000 square miles (670,000 square kilometers).

— keith ridler, idahostatesman, "Breeding ground 'hubs' help keep sage grouse healthy. In Idaho, 1 sits near CJ Strike," 6 June 2018
Habitat degradation has cut the sage grouse’s numbers from 16 million to around 200,000.

— matt simon, WIRED, "Why Scientists Turned This Taxidermy Bird Into a Robot," 1 June 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'sage grouse.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.