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National prominence
Spruce grouse
Spruce grouse is classified as huntable/regulated upland game in 11 of the 50 states surveyed for the 2026-27 season (research pass captured 2026-08-18). This is a factual presence/season-classification summary, not a population outlook — no 2026 outlook/forecast research was performed for this species; see each state's own state-species record for season dates and any opportunistic 2026 notes captured incidentally.
Cattail slough against picked corn. Where the roosters sit out a hard wind, and the reason the bird follows small-grain country across the northern plains.
Where it is open, and what the survey says
- AlaskaOpen5 windowsAwaiting survey — Alaska 2026
Governed by ADF&G Small Game Program's annual "Alaska Small Game Summary" (covers all 7 native grouse/ptarmigan species — ruffed, sharp-tailed, sooty, spruce grouse; rock, white-tailed, willow ptarmigan — in one hybrid document combining spring breeding-survey and summer brood-survey results with harvest expectations). Confirmed not yet published for 2026 as of a 2026-08-19 fresh check (the year-specific URL pattern small_game_status_2026_summary_report.pdf still returns 404, matching the Tier A registry's 2026-08-18 capture). No fixed calendar publish date exists, but both the 2024 and 2025 editions went live only after the early-August brood-survey fieldwork window closed, so publication is expected sometime in the coming weeks.
- IdahoOpens in 9 days2 windowsAwaiting survey — Idaho 2026
Forest grouse (spruce, ruffed, dusky) data comes from IDFG's post-season wing-barrel collection (juvenile:adult ratios), which is retrospective by design and feeds the following year's forecast narrative rather than standing alone as a pre-season 2026 report. That narrative sits inside the statewide/regional Upland Game Bird Forecast, which had not published as of 2026-08-19 (2025 edition published Sept 5, 2025); expected within the next 2-3 weeks.
- MinnesotaOpens in 29 daysAwaiting survey — Minnesota 2026
MN DNR (Charlotte Roy + John Giudice) runs a dedicated annual spring survey with editions confirmed 2020-2025 (files.dnr.state.mn.us/recreation/hunting/grouse/sprucegrouse_{YYYY}.pdf); a fresh search this pass found no 2026 edition yet, most recent confirmed is 2025.
- MontanaOpens in 11 daysAwaiting survey — Montana 2026
Tracked via Montana FWP's combined annual Upland Game Bird Season Outlook (pheasant, sage grouse, sharp-tailed grouse, gray/Hungarian partridge, chukar, dusky grouse, spruce grouse, ruffed grouse together, by region). The 2025 edition published Aug 20, 2025; a fresh direct fetch of the stable landing page (fwp.mt.gov/hunt/seasons/forecasts) on 2026-08-19 confirms it still shows only the 2025 edition — the 2026 edition appears imminent (one day short of last year's exact publish date). Spruce grouse's own signal within the Outlook comes from voluntary harvested-wing submissions (age/productivity) for mountain grouse, not a standalone survey.
- WashingtonOpens in 25 daysAwaiting survey — Washington 2026
WDFW's forest grouse (dusky/ruffed/sooty/spruce, combined season) coverage folds entirely into the retrospective, all-species Game Status and Trend Report (2025 edition published Feb 25, 2026); no standalone forest-grouse-specific pre-season forecast was found, per WDFW's own forest-grouse hunting page, which links only to that general report.