In the southern part of the territory of the Far East, in a relatively small corner of it, a very brave and at the same time secretive bird lives. Her name is wild, but taiga hunters and local residents called her a humble grouse. Photos of wild birds prove that it really looks like a hazel grouse, from a certain distance they are easily confused.
What is this bird, what is its way of life and where can it be found? All of this can be found in this article.
Legend
According to one legend, these birds are specially created by forest deities to help travelers who have lost their way in the forest. When the lost unfortunate person had no provisions or ammunition left, a wild woman appeared, completely fearless, not afraid of the person.
She could simply be knocked down with a stick from a tree or put a noose around her neck to cook food from it and not die a starvation.
Habitat
In Russia, the range of distribution of wild birds consists of three small isolated areas, one of which extends from the regions of the Amur Region (north-western part) and from Yakutia (south-eastern part) to the coast of the Sea of Okhotsk. The second district is the mountain taiga territories of Sikhote-Alin. The third habitat of wild boar is the central and northern regions of Fr. Sakhalin. But in all of these areas, the bird is distributed quite sporadically.
Dark coniferous taiga is a favorite habitat, and this bird is also found on plains and mountains covered with spruce-fir vegetation, sometimes with birch. They are located at altitudes reaching 1600 meters above sea level.
Description
The wild bird in its physique and behavior is a cross between a hazel grouse and a black grouse, but closer to the first. It is slightly larger than the hazel grouse, but smaller than the black grouse: its mass is about 600 grams. The length of the body along with the tail is 43 centimeters. Her wings, like many other chickens, are dull and short, however, despite this, she flies quickly enough. Paws are covered with thick warm fluff that protects the bird from cold in Siberian severe frosts.
The plumage has a darker color than that of the hazel grouse. Chestnut-black color is the main background, and on it there are white, gray, reddish and pale ocher spots and mottles. Females due to more light spots have a lighter color than males. On their feathers there is more admixture of reddish tones.
Wild birds, photos of which you see in the article, have a dense physique and a small head. On the throat and part of the neck there is a white trim on a black background. During mating period, males have “red eyebrows” that are clearly visible above the eyes — these are areas of bare skin.
The species of these birds (wild grouse) has the following classification: animal kingdom, chordate type, bird class, chicken order, grouse family, grouse genus.
Lifestyle
This bird is silent and inconspicuous, moves through the forest mostly slowly and does not even take off in case of danger. It is often stationary, rarely flies and over short distances - no more than 30 meters. The flight is accompanied by a characteristic whistle of the wings. Due to the well-developed ability of wild birds to hide, it can rarely turn out to be the prey of predators (including sables).
The male in the spring makes quiet sounds, reminiscent of the howling wind in a chimney. Even if it is only 10 meters away, it is impossible to determine the place where these sounds are heard from. The female has a creaky voice, mixing with a clatter.
In winter, birds are inactive, and they spend time on a small area of fir or spruce, eating in the crowns of tall trees. Most of the time they sit in the cells under the snow. Like the hazel grouse, wild grouse cleverly hides in the branches of conifers, sitting for a long time motionless in one place. Alarmed by the noise heard, the bird does not hide, but flies to the lower branch and, not afraid, watches the culprit of anxiety. Surprisingly gullible wild grouse is not very careful and not afraid of man.
Nutrition
In winter, the basis of the diet of this species of birds is the needles of spruce and fir, as well as larch. They eat it, shearing off the branches with their beak.
In the summer and autumn periods, wild grouse eat larch needles, moss seed boxes, foliage of herbaceous plants, various berries (cloudberries, blueberries, crowberries, cranberries, lingonberries). Sometimes they eat insects.
Breeding
The nesting time is mid-May to early June, and their nest is a small pit lined with green moss, leaves and grass. Usually, in the clutch of wild boletus, there are 8-12 eggs of a pale ocher color with chestnut spots.
The downy chick in the upper side of the body is painted in bright brown color, in the lower part - in pale yellow. Also, the kids on the crown have a brown “hat”. From a week old, chicks can fly up to the lowest branches of trees.
Interesting Facts
Savage - a bird that, as noted above, is overly trusting. She, completely not afraid, is easy enough to catch even for new hunters. Among the Siberian indigenous people (Evenki) there is a custom that is associated with wild women. A hunter who has met this bird will not kill it, but mentally wishes it to someone who, without strength, dies of hunger, as this bird is the easiest prey in these places.
An interesting fact is that when it begins to get dark, wild-boar, as well as black grouse, fall as a stone in the snow, in which deep holes are made (length - 60 cm, diameter - 14 cm). They rest in them until the morning. In these chambers, the birds do not freeze at all, even at 45 degrees below zero. On the contrary, they are very warm in them. With the onset of dawn, the humble grouse, leaving the shelter, begins to feed again, settling on the branches of trees.
These amazing fearless birds do not fly away with sharp sounds, but continue to sit still. Therefore, wild birds among all birds is the easiest prey. Any real hunter will not even try to catch her, because, as noted above, she can save the life of any traveler who strayed in the taiga forests, who for various reasons cannot hunt another, more serious game.
Currently, hunting for wild boar is prohibited, and this species is listed in the Red Book.
Population size
In the Khabarovsk Territory of Russia, the total number of wild game is about 12-15 thousand individuals, and in the most favorable habitats, the population density reaches about 15 individuals per 1 square kilometer. Within the habitat of this species there are several reserves (8 in total), where, among other birds and animals, they are also protected. It should be noted that the attachment of wild birds to some parts of the dark coniferous taiga can lead to the fact that, in case of fire or deforestation of this type, they also disappear with them.
In addition, very often gullible birds die at the hands of poachers. And at the same time, the fearlessness of these birds is a promising decorative species of birds for park areas and forest parks of suburban areas of the Far East.
Finally
Wild bird is such a bird, which due to its coloring has received another local name - "black hazel grouse". In Primorye, too, for her amazing credulity, she was nicknamed by the locals a meek or humble grouse.
This one of the little-studied and rare birds is on the verge of destruction. Their total number is unknown today, and it, unfortunately, is falling rather quickly. And man has a lot of work to do to preserve the appearance of wild boar.