How studying Grouse DNA, and a kinder approach to research, may help declining birds survive

Idaho Matters

A Columbian Sharp-Tailed Grouse displaying its feathers and performing a rhythmic mating ritual. (Stephanie Galla / Boise State )

Many bird species around the world are struggling, trying to adapt to a world that’s changing around them, as humans encroach on their homes. The West is seeing this happen with the Columbian Sharp-Tailed Grouse, where birds can only be found on 5% of the habitat where they once roamed.

“Here in Idaho we have about 30,000 birds left, a stronghold in the lower 48 states,” said Stephanie Galla. She’s an Assistant Professor in Avian Biology in the Department of Biological Sciences and she’s the primary investigator of the Conservation Genetics Lab at Boise State.

(Stephanie Galla / Boise State University)

Meanwhile in the Arctic, Gyrfalcons are getting more bird flu, as warmer weather brings more insects and disease in Alaska and Greenland. Are birds like these able to adapt to change? How can we predict if they’ll be resilient enough to survive?

Galla has two possible answers to these questions: DNA and a kinder approach to research.

Conservation Genetics Lab at Boise State University is made up of researchers who are using DNA to map the story of bird decline.

“Our lab group uses many different genetic and genomic tools to better understand the story of the diversity of birds and how they may be adapting to a changing world,” said Galla.

She’s been studying Columbian Sharp-Tailed Grouse and says they are a very colorful and rhythmic species.

Grouse leave footprints in the snow after their mating dance.(Stephanie Galla / Boise State )

“The male grouse will stomp their feet on the ground, put their wings out wide, rattle their tail, and inflate air sacs on the sides of their necks that are bright purple,” said Galla. “They also have eye combs, sort of like eyebrows, that are bright yellow. So these are incredibly charismatic birds that are found here in Idaho and one of the best dancers that you'll see.”

Galla said that the grouse has seen significant decline in Idaho and Washington and it’s important to study them now.

“We have a really precious resource here that we can manage, and we can make sure that they stick around for as long as they can.”

Stephanie Galla uses Grouse poop to identify DNA for her research.(Stephanie Galla / Boise State)

Avian researchers are utilizing DNA to identify diversity in different grouse populations.

"We often use DNA to understand what diversity looks like to identify populations that have lower diversity and may be less resilient and in need of conservation prioritization in a changing world,” Galla explained.

She said grouse DNA can be painlessly sampled through their poop.

“Within a single fecal pellet, we can understand the diversity of what birds are eating and how they're responding to changing habitats over time. We can also get a good idea of their gut microbiome, or all of the diversity of microbes that live in their gut.”

Galla calls it a noninvasive approach to research.

“You don't need to catch a bird to find their poop. You can find it by looking at the areas where they congregate or the areas where they sleep at night, their roosting spots.”

Stephanie Galla also creates illustrations many of the birds she studies.(Stephanie Galla / Boise State )

Galla built a diet database of what the birds eat in Idaho and Washington.

“We're really interested in seeing what the diet looks like across space and time,” she said. “We've discovered roughly 120 different plant species across their range so far.”

That’s important because “if we know what populations are doing well and what they're eating and how that might compare to populations that aren't doing well. We can figure out whether or not food might be a contributor to population success, or population decline, or fitness of birds over time.”

Gyrfalcon chicks in Iceland.(Stephanie Galla / Boise State)

Stephanie Galla and her Conservation Genetics Lab at Boise State are also studying Gyrfalcons in the Arctic and how they’re adapting to a warming climate. And she’s a co-founder of the Kindness in Science project, a project that started when she was in Aotearoa, New Zealand as a PhD student.

“We started this initiative to define a culture where we are prioritizing diversity and maintaining diversity of people and science over space and time. Where maybe we have single individuals that are prioritized more than a group,” Galla explained.

Although Columbian Sharp-Tailed Grouse are not federally threatened or endangered yet, they are currently experiencing a steep decline.

“We have an opportunity here to step in and actually make a difference, make a difference so that we don't end up with just a few hundred left. If there are tens of thousands of them here in Idaho, we have an opportunity to characterize their diversity, understand it better, and work with conservation practitioners,” Galla said.

Galla says studying birds in three different parts of the world can bring not only conservation efforts together, but people as well.

“They give us a really great sense of wonder and connection and home,” she said. “The great part about studying DNA is that every bird has it, no matter where in the world you are, so we can take lessons learned from other countries, from other systems.”

She said researchers and resource managers can apply those lessons locally in Idaho.

“The more we come together as a global community with these different approaches, the better we can be equipped to address these big challenges and biodiversity loss that we're seeing around the world.”

Illustration by Stephanie Galla(Stephanie Galla / Boise State )