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Bird

Ruffed Grouse

Bonasa umbellus

Lives in Virginia all year and nests here. Found in 86 of 133 counties and cities, across 14 habitats.

Here
All year
Nesting
Nests here
Range
86 of 133 counties and cities
Habitats
14

At a glance

Group
Birds
Here
All year
Nesting
Nests here
Range
86 of 133 counties and cities
Habitats
14
Habitat models
Year-round

Where it lives

The places its habitat model includes. It is not found everywhere a habitat occurs.

Habitats in Virginia 14

Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.

1 of 14

Hemlock forests

Hemlock forest / rocky mountain stream
Year-roundAppalachian Hemlock-Hardwood ForestRegional / representative. Shown: Great Smoky Mountains National Park, North Carolina and Tennessee; representative habitat composite, not a documented exact viewpoint, a neighboring state.Hemlock forest / rocky mountain stream, Hynes, Robert 'Bob', by 2012. Public domain. Source record.

Moist forests

Woods Scene
Year-roundSouthern Piedmont Mesic Forest; Southern and Central Appalachian Cove Forest; South-Central Interior Mesophytic ForestHarvey Joiner, Woods Scene: tall beeches in a moist Kentucky woodland, light falling through a closed canopy onto a damp forest floor. Regional view: the painting does not name the exact site. Shown: Kentucky beech woods (Harvey Joiner, Louisville painter of Kentucky beech forests; the painting does not name the site), a neighboring state.Woods Scene, Harvey Joiner, c. 1880-1920. Public domain. Source record.

Rich cove forests

Cove hardwood forest
Year-roundSouthern and Central Appalachian Cove ForestRegional / representative. Shown: Great Smoky Mountains National Park, North Carolina and Tennessee; representative habitat composite, not a documented exact viewpoint, a neighboring state.Cove hardwood forest, Hynes, Robert 'Bob', by 2012. Public domain. Source record.

Spruce-fir forests

Spruce-fir forest
Year-roundRegional / representative. Shown: Great Smoky Mountains National Park, North Carolina and Tennessee; representative habitat composite, not a documented exact viewpoint, a neighboring state.Spruce-fir forest, Hynes, Robert 'Bob', by 2012. Public domain. Source record.

Streams, rivers and their banks

Drawing, Autumn Landscape in North Carolina, 1865–70
Year-roundCentral Interior and Appalachian Riparian Systems; South-Central Interior Small Stream and RiparianFrederic Edwin Church, Autumn Landscape in North Carolina (1865-70): a boulder-strewn mountain river under autumn-coloured ridges. Regional view: the painting does not name the exact site. Shown: North Carolina mountains (Frederic Edwin Church, oil sketch 1865-70; Cooper Hewitt), a neighboring state.Drawing, Autumn Landscape in North Carolina, 1865–70, Frederic Edwin Church, 1865-1870. Public domain. Source record.

Swamps

The Chickahominy Swamp LCCN2004661405
Year-roundNorthern Atlantic Coastal Plain Basin Swamp and Wet Hardwood ForestWilliam McIlvaine, The Chickahominy Swamp (1862): wind-tossed swamp trees standing in dark water under a storm. Chickahominy Swamp, VirginiaThe Chickahominy Swamp LCCN2004661405, William McIlvaine (1813-1867), 1862. Public domain. Source record.

Dry forests and woodlands

Forests and open woodlands on dry ridges and slopes, often oak or pine.

Year-roundSouthern and Central Appalachian Oak Forest - Xeric; Allegheny-Cumberland Dry Oak Forest and Woodland - Hardwood; Central and Southern Appalachian Montane Oak Forest; Southern Piedmont Dry Oak-(Pine) Forest - Hardwood Modifier; Northern Atlantic Coastal Plain Dry Hardwood Forest; Southern Piedmont Dry Oak-(Pine) Forest; Central Appalachian Oak and Pine Forest; Southern Ridge and Valley Dry Calcareous Forest; Central Appalachian Pine-Oak Rocky Woodland; Southern Appalachian Montane Pine Forest and Woodland; Southern Appalachian Low Mountain Pine Forest

Floodplain and bottomland forests

Forests on low ground beside rivers and streams that flood from time to time.

Year-roundCentral Appalachian Riparian - Forest Modifier; South-Central Interior Large Floodplain - Forest Modifier; Southern Piedmont Large Floodplain Forest - Forest Modifier; Central Interior and Appalachian Floodplain Systems; Central Interior and Appalachian Riparian Systems; Southern Piedmont Small Floodplain and Riparian Forest; South-Central Interior Small Stream and Riparian; South-Central Interior Large Floodplain

Glades, barrens and outcrops on limestone

Open, thin-soil openings and rock on limestone, dolomite or other lime-rich rock, including cedar glades.

Year-roundRidge and Valley Calcareous Valley Bottom Glade and Woodland

Moderately dry forests

Forests between dry and moist, often oak-hickory on slopes.

Year-roundNortheastern Interior Dry-Mesic Oak Forest; Southern and Central Appalachian Oak Forest

Mountain bogs and fens

Wet, open, peaty mountain wetlands fed by seepage, often with sphagnum moss.

Year-round

Northern hardwood forests

High mountain forests of beech, yellow birch and sugar maple, including boulderfield forests.

Year-round

Tree plantations and managed pine

Planted or intensively managed stands of pine or hardwoods grown for timber; a land use rather than a natural community.

Year-roundDeciduous Plantation; Evergreen Plantation or Managed Pine; Managed Tree Plantation

Roadsides, fields and disturbed ground

Black Mountainlabel QS:Len,"Black Mountain"
Year-roundBeside its main habitat.Pasture/Hay; Utility Swath - HerbaceousLyell Carr, Black Mountain: a pasture and hayfield with a log barn, rail fence and grazing cow below the Black Mountains. Shown: Black Mountain, North Carolina (Lyell E. Carr), a neighboring state.Black Mountainlabel QS:Len,"Black Mountain", Lyell Carr, c. 1890-1912. Public domain. Source record.
Other habitats in its models (29)

Land cover, or classes with no habitat page in Virginia. Those recorded in Virginia first, the rest by region.

In Virginia 1

  • Southern Piedmont Glade and Barrens Year-round.
Elsewhere in the South (12)
  • Central Interior Highlands Calcareous Glade and Barrens Year-round.
  • Central Interior Highlands Dry Acidic Glade and Barrens Year-round.
  • Nashville Basin Limestone Glade Year-round.
  • Ouachita Montane Oak Forest Year-round.
  • Ozark-Ouachita Dry Oak Woodland Year-round.
  • Ozark-Ouachita Dry-Mesic Oak Forest Year-round.
  • Ozark-Ouachita Mesic Hardwood Forest Year-round.
  • Ozark-Ouachita Riparian Year-round.
  • Ozark-Ouachita Shortleaf Pine-Bluestem Woodland Year-round.
  • Ozark-Ouachita Shortleaf Pine-Oak Forest and Woodland Year-round.
  • Southeastern Interior Longleaf Pine Woodland Year-round.
  • Southern Interior Low Plateau Dry-Mesic Oak Forest Year-round.
Northeast (2)
  • Acadian Low-Elevation Spruce-Fir-Hardwood Forest Year-round.
  • Central Appalachian Alkaline Glade and Woodland Year-round.
Midwest (4)
  • North-Central Interior Beech-Maple Forest Year-round.
  • North-Central Interior Dry Oak Forest and Woodland Year-round.
  • North-Central Interior Dry-Mesic Oak Forest and Woodland Year-round.
  • North-Central Interior Maple-Basswood Forest Year-round.
Land cover and other classes (10)
  • Eastern Great Plains Floodplain Systems Year-round.
  • Harvested Forest - Grass/Forb Regeneration Year-round, beside its main habitat.
  • Introduced Upland Vegetation - Treed Year-round.
  • Northeastern Interior Dry Oak Forest - Mixed Modifier Year-round.
  • Northeastern Interior Dry Oak Forest - Virginia/Pitch Pine Modifier Year-round.
  • Northeastern Interior Dry Oak Forest-Hardwood Modifier Year-round.
  • Southern Piedmont Dry Oak-(Pine) Forest - Loblolly Pine Modifier Year-round.
  • Southern Piedmont Dry Oak-(Pine) Forest - Mixed Modifier Year-round.
  • Southern Piedmont Dry Oak-Heath Forest - Mixed Modifier Year-round.
  • Southern Ridge and Valley Dry Calcareous Forest - Pine modifier Year-round.

All habitats

Seasons in Virginia

  • Year-round: nests here, in 86 of 133 counties and cities.

Food plants

Diet records by plant genus, from studies across North America. Not a record from this state. Plants matched by genus.

Native plants in these genera 525

Plant genera in its diet records (73)
  • Rosa Fruit and leaves. 52 diet records. 3 native plants in Virginia
  • Rhus Fruit. 46 diet records. 6 native plants in Virginia
  • Cornus Fruit. 36 diet records. 0 native plants in Virginia
  • Populus Buds and leaves. 34 diet records. 4 native plants in Virginia
  • Quercus Seeds and fruit. 34 diet records. 27 native plants in Virginia
  • Corylus Flowers and fruit. 30 diet records. 2 native plants in Virginia
  • Amelanchier Fruit. 26 diet records. 7 native plants in Virginia
  • Ostrya 26 diet records. 1 native plant in Virginia
  • Acer Fruit and buds. 25 diet records. 8 native plants in Virginia
  • Carex Seeds and fruit. 25 diet records. 170 native plants in Virginia
  • Geum Fruit. 24 diet records. 6 native plants in Virginia
  • Desmodium 23 diet records. 19 native plants in Virginia
  • Trifolium Leaves. 22 diet records. 3 native plants in Virginia
  • Polystichum Leaves. 21 diet records. 1 native plant in Virginia
  • Salix Buds and leaves. 20 diet records. 8 native plants in Virginia
  • Cuscuta 18 diet records. 8 native plants in Virginia
  • Vitis Fruit and leaves. 18 diet records. 9 native plants in Virginia
  • Antennaria 17 diet records. 7 native plants in Virginia
  • Symphoricarpos Fruit. 17 diet records. 3 native plants in Virginia
  • Betula Buds and fruit. 15 diet records. 4 native plants in Virginia
  • Toxicodendron 15 diet records. 3 native plants in Virginia
  • Vaccinium Fruit and leaves. 14 diet records. 16 native plants in Virginia
  • Viburnum Fruit. 13 diet records. 10 native plants in Virginia
  • Viola Fruit and leaves. 13 diet records. 33 native plants in Virginia
  • Gaultheria Fruit and leaves. 12 diet records. 1 native plant in Virginia
  • Zea 11 diet records. 0 native plants in Virginia
  • Prunus Seeds and buds. 10 diet records. 7 native plants in Virginia
  • Shepherdia Buds. 10 diet records. 0 native plants in Virginia
  • Kummerowia 9 diet records. 0 native plants in Virginia
  • Rubus Fruit. 9 diet records. 9 native plants in Virginia
  • Fragaria Leaves. 8 diet records. 1 native plant in Virginia
  • Crataegus Fruit and buds. 7 diet records. 22 native plants in Virginia
  • Malus Fruit and leaves. 7 diet records. 2 native plants in Virginia
  • Potentilla Leaves. 7 diet records. 3 native plants in Virginia
  • Smilax Fruit and leaves. 7 diet records. 9 native plants in Virginia
  • Hieracium 6 diet records. 5 native plants in Virginia
  • Kalmia Leaves and buds. 6 diet records. 3 native plants in Virginia
  • Aster Leaves. 5 diet records. 0 native plants in Virginia
  • Carpinus 5 diet records. 1 native plant in Virginia
  • Fagus Buds and fruit. 5 diet records. 1 native plant in Virginia
  • Lonicera Leaves and fruit. 5 diet records. 3 native plants in Virginia
  • Thalictrum 5 diet records. 7 native plants in Virginia
  • Ulmus 5 diet records. 3 native plants in Virginia
  • Arctostaphylos Fruit. 4 diet records. 1 native plant in Virginia
  • Celastrus Fruit. 4 diet records. 1 native plant in Virginia
  • Heuchera Leaves. 4 diet records. 7 native plants in Virginia
  • Ilex Fruit. 4 diet records. 9 native plants in Virginia
  • Rumex 4 diet records. 2 native plants in Virginia
  • Alnus Buds and flowers. 3 diet records. 2 native plants in Virginia
  • Botrychium Leaves. 3 diet records. 2 native plants in Virginia
  • Impatiens 3 diet records. 2 native plants in Virginia
  • Maianthemum Fruit. 3 diet records. 3 native plants in Virginia
  • Pyrola Leaves. 3 diet records. 3 native plants in Virginia
  • Ranunculus 3 diet records. 15 native plants in Virginia
  • Sambucus 3 diet records. 2 native plants in Virginia
  • Arceuthobium Buds. 2 diet records. 0 native plants in Virginia
  • Arctous Fruit. 2 diet records. 0 native plants in Virginia
  • Berberis Fruit. 2 diet records. 1 native plant in Virginia
  • Coptis 2 diet records. 0 native plants in Virginia
  • Epigaea Leaves and fruit. 2 diet records. 1 native plant in Virginia
  • Equisetum Leaves. 2 diet records. 4 native plants in Virginia
  • Mitella Leaves. 2 diet records. 1 native plant in Virginia
  • Oxalis 2 diet records. 7 native plants in Virginia
  • Rhododendron Buds and fruit. 2 diet records. 9 native plants in Virginia
  • Taraxacum Leaves. 2 diet records. 0 native plants in Virginia
  • Tiarella Leaves. 2 diet records. 1 native plant in Virginia
  • Dryopteris Leaves. 1 diet record. 8 native plants in Virginia
  • Hamamelis Fruit. 1 diet record. 0 native plants in Virginia
  • Nyssa Fruit. 1 diet record. 3 native plants in Virginia
  • Polygala 1 diet record. 0 native plants in Virginia
  • Polygonum 1 diet record. 3 native plants in Virginia
  • Thelypteris 1 diet record. 1 native plant in Virginia
  • Vicia Seeds. 1 diet record. 2 native plants in Virginia

Avian Diet Database (Hurlbert Lab), CC0 1.0.

Also found in its main habitats

Its main habitats in Virginia, by how much of its habitat model each one is, with the birds most characteristic of each and the plants that grow wild there. Shared habitat, not food.

Dry forests and woodlands

Birds 68

Plants 230

All of dry forests and woodlands in Virginia

Floodplain and bottomland forests

Birds 86

Plants 381

All of floodplain and bottomland forests in Virginia

Moist forests

Birds 51

Plants 363

All of moist forests in Virginia

USGS Gap Analysis Project habitat models.

Sources