What is the difference between a ruffed grouse and a partridge? The answer lies in physics; one is flying, and one is not. 

Jokes aside, ruffed grouse stand as one of the most challenging birds to hit on the wing. I credit this more to do with their habitat than anything else. Ruffed grouse reside in dense foliage, shrubs, young trees, and conifers near water in many forms, whether a river, stream, pond, or bog. 

George Bird Evans said in The Upland Shooting Life, “I know of no bird shooting that offers so few hits for shells fired and, other than turkey hunting, so few chances to shoot as does grouse shooting, unless you indulge in idiot shots.”