As publishedSeptember 1 - December 31, 2026
Regulated jointly as 'Blue (Dusky and Sooty) and Ruffed Grouse' with a shared 3/9 aggregate limit. Open in Carson City, Douglas, Elko, Eureka, Esmeralda, Humboldt, Lander, Lincoln, Lyon, Mineral, Nye, Washoe, White Pine counties. Head or fully feathered wing must remain attached until reaching residence/commercial facility. 'No changes' from prior cycle per NDOW memo. Source: CR 26-13.
NDOW's only dusky/sooty grouse data-collection instrument is a post-season wing-collection program (age/sex/genetic sampling, running since 2007) -- retrospective harvest composition, not a pre-season population index or forecast. A separate academic point-count survey methodology exists in the research literature but was not confirmed as a recurring NDOW-published public forecast.