Yesterday we had to run down the shore to do some errands and on the way home we stopped to do a couple of fun things. One of which was to stop at Cascade River State Park to see a Ruffed Grouse doing its annual drumming ritual. Ruffed Grouse "drum" their wings in an attempt to attract a mate. Usually they choose to do this from the log of a fallen tree, but this grouse has chosen a nice moss-covered rock to do his drumming. It is a beautiful location for the grouse to be but the lighting is best in the evening. Unfortunately we were there mid-day and the grouse was in complete shade while the forest behind him was in bright sun. If my camera had a flash I could have gotten a better in-camera exposure, however I have never owned a flash for my SLR camera. The highlights and shadows tools in Lightroom allowed me to edit my original image into a pretty decent shot, though. This photo was taken right after the grouse stopped drumming. After they've drummed they stay "puffed up" like this for a few moments, with their tail fanned out. From a distance these birds appear somewhat drab in color, but up close you realize how much detail and color is actually in their feathers. They really are quite beautiful birds!
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