• Summary
• Text account
• Data table and detailed info
• Range map
• Resources

Taxonomic source(s)
del Hoyo, J., Collar, N.J., Christie, D.A., Elliott, A. and Fishpool, L.D.C. 2014. HBW and BirdLife International Illustrated Checklist of the Birds of the World. Volume 1: Non-passerines. Lynx Edicions BirdLife International, Barcelona, Spain and Cambridge, UK.

Red List criteria met

Critically Endangered	Endangered	Vulnerable
-	C2a(ii)	C1+2a(ii)

Red List history

Year	Category	Criteria
2020	Endangered	C2a(ii)
2016	Endangered	B2ab(i,ii,iii,v)
2012	Endangered	B2ab(i,ii,iii,v)
2008	Endangered	B2a+b(i,ii,iii,v)
2007	Endangered
2005	Endangered
2004	Endangered
2000	Endangered
1994	Not Recognised
1988	Not Recognised

Migratory status	not a migrant	Forest dependency	does not normally occur in forest
Land-mass type	continent	Average mass	-

	Estimate	Data quality
Extent of Occurrence (breeding/resident)	37,500 km2	medium
Area of Occupancy (breeding/resident)	13,884 km2	good
Severely fragmented?	no	-

	Estimate	Data quality	Derivation	Year of estimate
Population size	1770-8400 mature individuals	medium	estimated	2020
Population trend	decreasing	medium	estimated	2007-2024
Rate of change over the past 10 years/3 generations (longer of the two periods)	1-19%	-	-	-
Rate of change over the future 10 years/3 generations (longer of the two periods)	1-19%	-	-	-
Rate of change over the past & future 10 years/3 generations (longer of the two periods)	1-19%	-	-	-
Generation length	5.8 years	-	-	-
Number of subpopulations	1	-	-	-
Percentage of mature individuals in largest subpopulation	95-99%	-	-	-

Population justification: Population size estimates vary for this species, ranging from roughly 3,300 mature individuals (Young et al. 2020) to 8,400 mature individuals (Partners in Flight 2019). High counts (3-year average; USFWS 2019) give numbers of 885 males on leks. Assuming an equal sex ratio, this would equate to 1,770 mature individuals. No information on detectability is given, but it is likely that the true population size is larger than this number. Studies have detected low levels of gene flow between sites; therefore the species is tentatively assessed as forming only one subpopulation (USFWS 2019, Zimmerman et al. 2019 and references therein).

Trend justification: The species has been undergoing a large, significant decline over the last five decades; the rate of decline amounts to more than 50% between 1970 and 2017, equating to ≥ 22.6% over three generations (17.4 years; Partners in Flight 2019, see also Panjabi et al. 2019). There have been long-term declines in lek sites, males at leks, offspring and juvenile recruitment (BLM 1999, J. R. Young in litt. 1999, Storch 2000, Young et al. 2000, Davis et al. 2016). It seems however, that these declines are historical, and the largest population in the Gunnison Basin is assessed as stable since the late 1990s (Davis et al. 2015, USFWS 2019). The seven satellite populations around Gunnison Basin are in more fragile states though: declines are still ongoing, and under a worst case scenario, up to five of the satellite populations may be in critical condition or even extirpated by 2050 (USFWS 2019). The species is therefore projected to undergo a decline as satellite populations are declining, but the impact on the overall population is likely low, given that up to 90% of the population in the Gunnison Basin is presumably safe. The species is therefore estimated to decline at a rate of < 20% over three generations, which is projected to continue in the future.

Country/Territory	Presence	Origin	Resident	Breeding visitor	Non-breeding visitor	Passage migrant
USA	extant	native	yes

Country/Territory	IBA Name
USA	Gunnison Basin
USA	San Juan County - Gunnison Sage-Grouse UT21

Habitat (level 1)	Habitat (level 2)	Importance	Occurrence
Shrubland	Temperate	major	resident
Altitude	2250 - 2550 m	Occasional altitudinal limits

Threat (level 1)	Threat (level 2)	Impact and Stresses
Agriculture & aquaculture	Annual & perennial non-timber crops - Agro-industry farming	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Ongoing		Minority (<50%)		Negligible declines		Low Impact: 4
		Stresses Ecosystem degradation, Ecosystem conversion
Agriculture & aquaculture	Livestock farming & ranching - Agro-industry grazing, ranching or farming	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Ongoing		Minority (<50%)		Negligible declines		Low Impact: 4
		Stresses Ecosystem degradation, Ecosystem conversion
Biological resource use	Hunting & trapping terrestrial animals - Intentional use (species is the target)	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Past, Unlikely to Return		Majority (50-90%)		Rapid Declines		Past Impact
		Stresses Species mortality
Climate change & severe weather	Droughts	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Future		Majority (50-90%)		Unknown		Unknown
		Stresses Species mortality
Climate change & severe weather	Temperature extremes	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Ongoing		Majority (50-90%)		Slow, Significant Declines		Medium Impact: 6
		Stresses Species mortality
Energy production & mining	Oil & gas drilling	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Future		Minority (<50%)		Rapid Declines		Low Impact: 4
		Stresses Ecosystem degradation, Ecosystem conversion
Residential & commercial development	Housing & urban areas	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Ongoing		Minority (<50%)		Negligible declines		Low Impact: 4
		Stresses Ecosystem degradation, Ecosystem conversion
Transportation & service corridors	Roads & railroads	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Past, Unlikely to Return		Minority (<50%)		Rapid Declines		Past Impact
		Stresses Ecosystem degradation, Ecosystem conversion
Transportation & service corridors	Utility & service lines	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Ongoing		Minority (<50%)		Negligible declines		Low Impact: 4
		Stresses Ecosystem degradation, Ecosystem conversion, Species mortality

Purpose	Scale
Food - human	subsistence, national
Sport hunting/specimen collecting	subsistence, national

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Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2025) Species factsheet: Gunnison Grouse Centrocercus minimus. Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/factsheet/gunnison-grouse-centrocercus-minimus on 14/01/2025.
Recommended citation for factsheets for more than one species: BirdLife International (2025) IUCN Red List for birds. Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/search on 14/01/2025.