RGS Blog

In the Habitat Business

October 31, 2025 by Ruffed Grouse Society

by Troy Holcomb, Minnesota DNR Division of Forestry It’s a frosty 10-degree morning in early February—the perfect time to find a northern Minnesota logger in their natural habitat. “It’s a good time to be a logger,” said Gene Ruud of Timber Transport, and he has good reason. Consistent low temperatures and minimal snow cover made accessing timber harvest areas with heavy equipment easier than previous years. To loggers, cutting trees isn’t just a job– they carry out their mission with a zeal and passion akin to an experienced pointing dog in their prime. Each year across Minnesota, between two and three million...

Ted Williams – The Hitter and The Hunter

October 30, 2025 by Ruffed Grouse Society

by Craig Mitchell Ted Williams was one of the best baseball players to ever play the game. A player of epic proportions and, at times, equally as divisive, Williams would rely on the rivers, streams, fields and forests to escape and find a reprieve from the constant media scrutiny. His passion and knowledge for the outdoors led him to sign one of the largest endorsement deals of the time, lending his name to a series of shotguns and sporting goods for Sears department store. It was Ted’s scientific approach to hitting that helped him achieve success at home plate and it...

Improving Woodcock and Quail Habitat on the Delmarva Peninsula and in Southern Maryland

October 29, 2025 by Seth Heasley

Developing new collaborations in the Atlantic Flyway by Ben Larson, Mid-Atlantic Forest Conservation Director During my time at RGS & AWS, I’ve focused on heavily forested parts of the Mid-Atlantic, including northern Pennsylvania, western Maryland, Virginia and West Virginia. However, for the last year and a half, I’ve started to develop partnerships and projects in the partly forested parts of the region, particularly the Delmarva Peninsula (an abbreviation of Delaware, Maryland and Virginia) and southern Maryland (southeast of Washington, D.C.). The reason is simple: for migrating woodcock, the Delmarva Peninsula and southern Maryland provide critical stopover habitats along the Atlantic Flyway. The American...

Saying Grace: A Hunter’s Revelation

October 28, 2025 by Ruffed Grouse Society

by Anthony Giattino The woodcock crumpled and fell from the sky; I couldn’t believe it. My dog, Marlowe, had been on point, focused like a surgeon, and I was nervous. The loud report from the shotgun faded into a quiet stillness. Marlowe looked at me, just as surprised as I was. “What now?” he seemed to ask. I was responsible for ending that bird’s life and it deserved the respect of being treated and cooked as the gift it was. “I’ll bring it to Chef Nick.” The woodcock I shot, and the meal it became, would forever change my perspective on...

Should I Be Fitted for a Shotgun?

October 3, 2025 by Ruffed Grouse Society

by Mark Coleman Most hunters think of gun fitting as something that goes along with a bespoke Purdey or Holland & Holland – a piece easily costing as much as a car and one we’d be afraid to actually take into the field. These days, however, custom shotguns can be found in a wide range of prices reaching into more affordable spaces for the average wingshooter, and a proper fitting can even help make your favorite off-the-shelf piece more accurate. After years of pining for a 28-gauge and squirreling away the funds for it, I had a YOLO moment and decided to...

Ruff Numbers

October 2, 2025 by Ruffed Grouse Society

Hunter success ebbs and flows with the declining Eastern Washington ruffed grouse population by Brad Trumbo The arid lands of Eastern Washington don’t look much like grouse country on the surface. The seasons are long, comprised mainly of a scorching summer and an often mild, wet winter, particularly in the southeastern corner. Spring and fall are minor notions, like crossing a threshold between dichotomous worlds. By September, Eastern Washington residents beg for a solitary raindrop and overcast skies. The north pole’s angle of obliquity increases quickly, bringing precious moisture and cool, lengthening nights. Higher elevation and coniferous forests stand just beyond the city...

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