"Perilously low numbers of this bird now exist. Grazers have allowed their cattle and sheep to overgraze, inviting in noxious weeds and removing cover and food for the birds; ranchers have even camped out or put water and salt right on top of the grouse's courtship and mating grounds. And now these same ranchers want an exemption from the requirements of the Endangered Species Act.
With local drought and global climate change also looming, the time to act to protect the grouse's dwindling numbers is now. Please save these dancing birds of California and Nevada by giving them the Act's full protection -- before it's too late."