Of course I was intrigued so I took April up on her offer and after I saw the photo I asked her if she would allow me to use it in a blog post. In her reply she said I could and told me that the photo was actually taken by her daughter Haley Olson on her phone. Both April and Haley are rehabbers – good works run in their family.<\/p>\n
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![\"\"](\"https:\/\/featheredphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/ruffed-grouse-feet-haley-olson.jpg\")
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Copyright Haley Olson.<\/em><\/p>\n Here’s the uncropped photo.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Copyright Haley Olson.<\/em><\/p>\n But I took the liberty of cropping tightly on the feet, adding some sharpening and lightening up some of the shadows for slightly better detail.<\/p>\n Notice all the narrow pectinations (meaning comb-like) growing laterally from the scales on the toes. Those pectinations are actually extensions of foot scales so they’re not feathers. Ruffed Grouse are non-migratory and typically prefer higher-elevation forests in the lower 48 states (or boreal forests further north) so they spend a lot of time in deep snow. The pectinations act to significantly increase the surface area of the feet so they function like showshoes. Interestingly, the pectinations of Ruffed Grouse in northern areas where there’s typically more snow are twice as long as those in more southerly regions.<\/p>\n The three forward toes are also slightly webbed to increase the surface area of the feet even more but that slight webbing cannot be seen here.<\/p>\n One of several reasons very few people ever see these “snowshoes” is that they’re not permanent. They begin to grow each year in the fall and drop off in the spring. The bird in the photo died of a window strike on October 22 so by that time this is how long the pectinations were. Perhaps if this grouse had not died they’d have grown even longer.<\/p>\n I’d venture to say that most folks who are lucky enough to see Ruffed Grouse see them in the warmer months when the pectinations have fallen off and even those who do spot one in winter would be highly unlikely to see their feet in enough detail to notice the “snowshoes”. Perhaps hunters see them more often.<\/p>\n So that’s why I jumped at the chance to see and use this photo. Thank you April and Haley.<\/p>\n Ron<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Note:<\/p>\n I simply have to take this opportunity to thank April and Haley for the rehab work they’ve both done for many years. To my knowledge they both perform this service as strict volunteers and the primary thanks they get is the satisfaction of saving lives and being able to spend intimate time with the birds and other animals they love. <\/em><\/p>\n But hand in hand with that satisfaction goes the heartbreak and distress of seeing and dealing with sick and often badly mangled critters and having to put many of them down in order to do what’s best for them. It takes a special kind of person for that kind of work because it can often lead to an emotional train wreck. So I salute April and Haley and every other rehabber out there. Think about it – rehabbers do what they do because they love wildlife and then they have to regularly see them suffer horribly. <\/em><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/featheredphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/ruffed-grouse-feet-tight-crop-haley-olson.jpg\")
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