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The Greater Prairie-Chicken
Tympanuchus Cupido
By Wyatt Miller, age 15
The Greater Prairie-Chicken is a bird in great
danger of becoming extinct in North America. Only
small, isolated populations still exist east of the
Mississippi River. The Chickens are known by many
birders because of their unique breeding ritual
known as lekking. Now, extensive preservation
measures are being put in place to hopefully save
this unique and beautiful bird.
The Greater Prairie-Chicken is one of the rarest
birds in North America and is closely related to the
Lesser Prairie-Chicken which is even rarer. Most
populations are small, local, and isolated. This
means that there are often times when inbreeding
makes new broods of eggs fail. Recently humans have
tried to switch around chickens in different
populations to try to turn this problem around.
Because of this new technique, many small
populations are still being maintained.
At first glance, these chickens could be confused
with any sort of grouse. Then it becomes very easy
to identify them in the breeding season. The males
put up little ear tufts that look like little horns.
Then they try to fan out their tails and blow up
little orange air sacks on their necks. All these
features help the males attract females. These
interesting characteristics make it a real joy to go
see the chickens.
The best part of seeing the Greater Prairie-Chicken
is seeing the unique breeding behaviors it exhibits.
The chickens first form large breeding groups
called Leks. The males fight to try and acquire a
small territory. The chickens first make little
stand offs. Then they charge and jump at
one-another. The closer to the middle of the lek,
the better the territory. Males with central
territory will do most of the mating. The males
engage in a lot of fighting and showing off in order
to attract a female and get a prime spot. Many
birders flock to good populations in order to watch
the rituals.
The Greater Prairie-Chicken was once a very abundant
species that could be found almost everywhere in
North America. They were harvested without
restriction. Then the Eastern subspecies, called the
Heath Hen went extinct. This was a wake up call to
preserve the Chickens. Many things are being done to
make sure that the Greater Prairie-Chicken doesn’t
end up like the Heath Hen. This includes removal of
pheasants, their natural enemies, from their
habitat, not using pesticides that will kill insects
used for food, and changing the chickens in
different populations to prevent inbreeding.
The Greater Prairie-Chicken is an amazing bird that
should be seen by all. If you ever get the
opportunity to go and see them, I suggest you jump
on it. Hopefully these birds will be around for a
long time. Although their outlook is grim, it is not
too late for these chickens. Recently progress has
been made in protecting and preserving the Greater
Prairie-Chicken. If we continue this progress we may
be able to save the Greater Prairie-Chicken from
extinction.
Page last updated on
Friday July 25, 2008
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