CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) - For those hoping to see sage grouse in their annual mating display, Game and Fish is devising a viewing pamphlet that will contain information on easy-to-access leks throughout the state.

There are four species of grouse in Wyoming: sage grouse, sharp tail grouse, woodland or ruffed grouse, and blue grouse. Of the four, only the sage grouse and the sharp tail grouse put on mating displays on leks. The other two species breed individually in harder-to-access areas.

Information and education specialist Lucy Diggins-Wold of the Green River office is compiling the pamphlet with information on sage grouse and sharp tail grouse. She expects to complete it this summer. Unfortunately it won't be ready in time to see grouse this year, but will be in an Adobe Acrobat format to download from the Game and Fish Web site in time for next year's mating season.

"It'll have one or two sites in every region," Diggins-Wold says. "They'll all be pretty close to the highway with plenty of parking."

Releasing information on protected areas like sage grouse leks to the public can be tricky, she says.

"We want to foster that interest in wildlife and help people have that experience, but we also want to protect the wildlife," she says. "We really want people to respect the birds that are providing this recreation for them."

The pamphlet will include tips on viewing etiquette. These include getting to the site an hour before sunrise, shutting off vehicle lights and engines, using binoculars and spotting scopes, and not getting out of the vehicle.

"We recommend not leaving until the birds do," Diggins-Wold says.

If you do visit a lek to see grouse, leave your pets at home, she adds.

Wyoming residents are lucky to be able to see grouse in this impressive display, says Alison Holloran, conservation programs manager for Audubon Wyoming.

"We hold the core population of grouse in Wyoming and the majority of the leks are on BLM and other public land," she says.

Although it's tempting to get close to the birds, Holloran says it's important to stay at a safe distance.

"You don't want to get in the way of their mating behavior," she says. "The females are very sensitive - they're not the ones dancing and being showy out there."

Information from: Wyoming Tribune-Eagle, http://www.wyomingnews.com