The Greater Sage-Grouse is certainly a formidable-looking bird. Being the largest grouse in North America and having tail feathers, which look like giant spikes, make for a ferocious sight. These birds are well known for their complicated courtship rituals, in which the males perform a special “strutting display” to attract the females. Another distinct feature of the Greater Sage-Grouse is two large yellow throat sacs (gular sacs), which are inflated by the males during the courtship display. Unlike pelicans, whose gular sacs are used to store fish while hunting, the throat sacks of the Greater Sage-Grouse are merely for display.

Allie Plott, Lydia Smith, Madeline Evans and Ellie Boulware, members of The Tuscaloosa Community Dancers, prepare for a dress rehearsal of The Nutcracker at the Bama Theatre in Tuscaloosa, Alabama on December, 5, 2023. (Photo by Gary Cosby Jr./Tuscaloosa News)

A greater bird of paradise (Paradisaea apoda) displaying in Badigaki Forest, Wokam Island (Aru Islands, Indonesia). Found here in Aru and on adjacent New Guinea, the greater bird of paradise represents about 40 different species of birds of paradise that depend on intact rainforest across the New Guinea region spanning eastern Indonesia and Papua New Guinea. With more than 80% of forest cover still intact, this region represents the largest remaining block of rainforest in the entire Asia-Pacific. (Photo by Tim Laman/naturepl.com/LDY Agency)

A model poses on Aprilia motorcycle displayed at the Indian Auto Expo in Greater Noida, on the outskirts of New Delhi, India, February 4, 2016. (Photo by Anindito Mukherjee/Reuters)

A rag picker carries recyclable materials amid cows and greater adjutant storks at a disposal site in Boragaon on the outskirts of Guwahati on June 5, 2024. (Photo by Biju Boro/AFP Photo)

Janet Layug walks off stage during the Bikini International competition at the Greater Columbus Convention Center during the Arnold Sports Festival 2017 on March 4, 2017 in Columbus, Ohio. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

Models pose alongside the Kia SP SUV Concept car after its launch at India Auto Show 2018 in Greater Noida, February 7, 2018. The biennial automobile exhibition opens to public Friday and runs till Feb. 14. (Photo by Saumya Khandelwal/Reuters)

Clouds in Drakensberg Escarpment in the lowveld, also known as Mariepskop, South Africa in July 2019. Snapped by professional Photographer, Em Gatland, 37, from Greater Kruger, South Africa, the unique shot could easily be mistaken for a dangerous wave rather than clouds passing through a sunset. (Photo by Em Gatland/Caters News Agency)