Birds from a Blind: Another Way to "Hunt"

As a wildlife photographer, I can often get some frame-filling images simply by slowly walking in a wildlife area or even slowly driving the back roads and taking images out of my vehicle, but many times it is better to be in a photo blind in areas I expect the birds to be. Sometimes I will set up my own blind, but in certain areas, you can reserve one from a wildlife organization or state/federal agencies that have set them up on leks.

- John Pennoyer

The males of some species, such as sharp-tailed grouse and prairie chickens, will use the same lek year after year to perform their ritualized mating dances to attract hens.

I use my own blind on private land with permission from the owner for both sharp-tailed grouse and ring-necked pheasants. I also use it when photographing ruffed grouse on their drumming logs. But most of my sharptailed grouse and prairie chicken images were taken from blinds that one needs to reserve for a morning or two.

While many of the places that have blinds to reserve were closed in 2020-2021 because of the pandemic, by 2022 I was able to reserve a couple of mornings on a sharp-tailed grouse lek. These public blinds fill up fast, and many may not begin to take reservations until January or February for the coming spring. Most of the blinds that I reserved were large enough for two or three people, but some locations may have blinds for larger groups.

The general guideline for all blinds is to be sure to arrive very early, at least an hour before sunrise, for the males come to the lek very early in the morning. Stay in the blind until the birds have all departed the lek, generally around 8:30 to 9:30 a.m.

PRAIRIE CHICKEN BLIND