Watch: North Dakota sage-grouse numbers continue to fall

Each spring, North Dakota biologists count sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) on their breeding grounds to get population estimates.

Over the past 20 years, their populations have been on the decline, due largely to habitat loss and West Nile disease. While male sage-grouse numbers once topped 100 in the state, their numbers now never reach 50.

Biologists say the state now has just two breeding grounds—or leks. Last year, researchers counted 24 males. Preliminary counts this year suggests today’s numbers may be lower.

Watch the video from the North Dakota Game and Fish Department below.