Centrocercus fossil map
Where fossils of Centrocercus have been found, shown on the Earth as it looked about 0 million years ago and on today’s map.
Dots are fossil collections recorded in the Paleobiology Database. The “then” view moves today’s fossil sites back to their positions 0 million years ago (the time slice nearest the median age of the fossils) using the Merdith et al. (2021) plate model; positions are approximate. Open on the timeline map →
| Group | Prehistoric birds |
|---|---|
| Lived | 1.4 million years ago to the present (Calabrian to Holocene) |
| Periods | Quaternary |
| Family | Phasianidae |
| Named by | Swainson 1832 |
| Fossil records | 4 occurrences at 4 locations (PBDB) |
| Found in | United States |
| Rock formations | txn:39340 |
About Centrocercus
Sage-grouse are grouse belonging to the bird genus Centrocercus. The genus includes two species: the Gunnison grouse (Centrocercus minimus) and the greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus). These birds are distributed throughout large portions of the north-central and Western United States, as well as the Canadian provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan. The International Union for Conservation of Nature classified the
C. minimus species as endangered in 2020 and C. urophasianus as near threatened in 2016.
Text in “About” is quoted from the Wikipedia article Centrocercus (revision 1379732911), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0; introduction excerpted verbatim, formatting removed. Ages, family, authority and fossil records: Paleobiology Database, accessed 23 October 2026. Ages are those of the rock layers the fossils were found in. Wikidata: Q814693.
