Most characteristic of Capercaillies are, apart from their diet, the very distinct voices related to their courtship behaviour. In the second half of April and May, the male embarks on his “concert performance” in a tree early in the morning, in the twilight, when the majority of birds have not started singing yet, as his voice is barely half-voiced and would not be distinct or prominent enough during the later all-round bird concert. His noises are performed in four parts, the first called “saw-whetting”, which then turns into “grinding”, followed by the “main blow” as if opening a bottle of champagne, and ending with the fourth part “grinding hissing”, when the Capercaillie can be approached. The grinding hissing sounds last for only two or three seconds, when we can take a step or two, hardly three.

Courtship dance

While display calling, the male Capercaillie flutters the feathers on his throat, walks on a strong horizontal branch and spreads his tail like a fan. He has 16 feathers in his tail, perhaps 20, and in males that are five years old at least, the individual feathers are visibly wider at the tip than at the root, with the fans measuring a full 180 degrees. The females respond to the male and approach the tree where he is performing. He descends to the ground to the females and mates with them. Thereupon, all his care for the offspring is over and hens incubate the eggs and raise their young by themselves.