Every year, Eastern Oregon offers a hunt for sage grouse on the dry side of the Cascades. It is a controlled hunt and a bird hunter must apply for the privilege.
In the 1800s, up to 1.1 million sage grouse could be found in parts of what are now 16 western states and three provinces. Habitat disruption and destruction probably accounted for most of the decline. In 1998, the rangewide estimate was that the springtime sage grouse population numbered 157,000.