By Nick Simonson

As the premier destination in the upper Midwest for upland hunters seeking ruffed grouse, Minnesota sports millions of acres of public land in the form of national and state forests, state Wildlife Management Areas (WMA), along with abundant county land which harbor the loud flushing species which is subject to a natural ebb-and-flow in populations.  This year, according to Charlotte Roy, Research Scientist with the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR), ruffed grouse are on the downward slope of their ten year cycle, but still provide uplanders good opportunities if they know where to look.

“Minnesota always has some of the best ruffed grouse hunting in the country.  This year we are in the declining phase of the ten-year cycle, which means that things aren’t going to be quite as wonderful as they were a couple of years ago but we have had good conditions over the summer, so I think there will be some good hunting to be had,” Roy relates.

With destinations like the Superior and Cloquet National Forests in the northeastern part of the state, which harbors excellent populations of the birds and is their core range in the Land of 10,000 Lakes, hunters should be aware of not only those spaces they can access for walking hunts, but also of those areas within a designated WMA or forest land that grouse relate to.  Ruffies need a variety of habitat, food sources, and water to survive and beget the next generation of birds, and as the autumn progresses, Roy suggests hunters look for those edges between new forests that harbor young birds, and the older stands of trees which provide other aspects for their survival as the cold weather season sets in.

“Ruffed grouse of course are forested birds. They reach their highest densities in the fall in young aspen habitat – so ten to 20 years old, or roughly the size of your forearm or so – and that’s where you’re going to see the highest densities in the fall. But they actually need a variety of different forest ages, because they rely on mature forests to produce food for them in the winter, and so they need those things to happen in close proximity to each other, because most grouse spend their entire lives in a couple-acre area,” Roy details.

Overall, statewide counts of drumming birds – those being male ruffed grouse who beat their wings in spring to attract a mate – observed by DNR agents in those season routes of known habitat, are down to 1.7 drums heard per stop statewide. This is off slightly from 2025’s statewide observation of 1.8 drums per stop, and the most recent cyclical peak in 2024, when counts were at about 2.3 per observation point.  In the larger, sprawling northeastern portion of the state comprising the birds’ primary habitat, drum counts were 1.9 per stop this spring.  Counts actually increased to 2.4 drums per stop in the northwest and just 1 drum per stop in the Central Hardwoods region earlier this year.  The increase in the northwest may be a function of limited sample size, according to Roy.

Roy states that based on the recent peak, these numbers aren’t unexpected and scientists and upland biologists are getting closer to unlocking the factors behind the trend, focusing on rhythmic climactic changes that influence a variety of factors.  She also advises that those areas of forests which were drier this spring and summer may hold better hunting in the near term, and uplanders should check seasonal rain maps to determine areas where young-of-the-year birds are more plentiful, steering their adventures around those localized areas which may have received more rain.

“What hunters see in the fall is largely influenced by what happens over the summer and that of course affects our brood survival. So what did happen this summer is that we had drought conditions in a large portion of the state, that can be very good for chick survival,” Roy states, adding, “be willing to move around and try different areas, because if you can manage to hit areas where they didn’t have those heavy – and by heavy I mean one-to-two inch rainfalls in late June – you’ll have a better chance at getting into some birds.”

The Minnesota ruffed grouse season begins on Sat. Sep. 19 and closes Sun. Jan. 3, 2027.  Hunting times are one half hour before sunrise until sunset with a daily limit of five grouse including spruce grouse also found in northeastern Minnesota, with no more than two spruce grouse in that limit.  More information on ruffed grouse, WMAs dedicated to the birds, population reports and grouse hunting walking trails can be found online at: dnr.state.mn.us/hunting/grouse. 

Simonson is the lead writer and editor of Dakota Edge Outdoors.

Featured Photo: A Huge Fan.  Hunters seeking ruffed grouse will find more birds in drier areas of Minnesota this fall as the population ebbs in its natural, ten-year cycle.   Simonson Photo.