The Pennsylvania Game Commission is asking for help in learning more about the state bird.
As part of a genetics study, information is being collected about wild, undomesticated ruffed grouse that show little fear or even act aggressively toward people.
Anyone who has an encounter like this is asked to send an email to grousecomments@pa.gov with name and phone number as well as the date of the sighting, location, and a description of the bird’s behavior.
Game Commission officials say that field staff will then visit the site to try to collect a genetic sample from the bird. The grouse will then be immediately released with the information gathered helping to study if this kind of behavior is linked to genetics.