Habitat use data for male ruffed grouse in the Black Hills National Forest

Ruffed grouse (Bonasa umbellus) are native upland game birds and a management indicator species (MIS) for aspen (Populus tremuloides) in the Black Hills National Forest in South Dakota and Wyoming. Drumming surveys were conducted in the spring of 2007 and 2008 to locate used and unused male ruffed grouse sites from which habitat characteristics were compared at increasing spatial scales of 200 meters (m), 400 m, 1600 m, and 4800 m. Data include ruffed grouse occupancy, canopy coverage percentages, stem densities, and patch sizes of aspen and ponderosa pine trees in 32 used and 32 unused sites.The objective of this study was to assess resource selection of male ruffed grouse (Bonasa umbellus) to identify the most appropriate scale to manage for aspen (Populas tremuloides) and ruffed grouse in the Black Hills.Original metadata date was 11/14/2014. Minor metadata updates on 12/14/2016.