Greater Prairie-chicken, Tympanuchus cupido
Every spring, an incredible battle royale occurs. Male Greater Prairie-chickens gather at their booming grounds, ready to prove that they are hot stuff. They will flip up their neck feathers, inflate their air sacs, and snap their tails. It is an amazing sight to behold- and last Sunday I got to observe it in person!
Greater Prairie-chickens are unfortunately a species on the decline. In fact, they almost went extinct in the 1930s. While they numbered in the millions before this, their prairie habitat was quickly swallowed by westward expansion and the claiming of prairie land for agriculture. Their population in North America is now reduced to pockets of birds on managed prairie land, and a few select agricultural spaces. Central Wisconsin is home to about 600 birds (down from 55,000.) The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources manages about 30,000 acres of land to help preserve these last chickens. I knew I had to take the chance to try to see one while I was in the state. So, I looked up the chickens on EBird, discovered a lek site 2 hours from me, and laid out plans tot stake them out.
Waking up at 3:30 AM was rough, but it was getting towards the end of the lekking season and I knew if I did not go then, I may miss my chance to find them. Aside from the breeding season when the birds are actively displaying, these chickens are incredibly hard to find. I should know- last August my friend and I spent hours scouring fields for the birds, with zero luck.
So two and a half hours of driving later, the sun was up and my partner and I had arrived at the road in the George W Mead State Wildlife Management Area that supposedly hosted a Prairie-chicken lek. It looked wildly unassuming- both sides of the road were lined with tilled fields. It was hard to imagine a bird so linked to prairies in a place like this. We examined the photos attached to the EBird report, and managed to triangulate the barns and trees in the photos to get to the exact spot the birds must have been observed. I felt like a bona fide detective. We got out scopes and started looking, hoping, wishing. Then, like magic, there one was! It was so far out in the field it looked like a muddy lump without the scope. But the magic of good optics turned it into a true chicken. To our delight, more chickens materialized. By the time we had gotten to a better position, we were able to watch one of the great spectacles of nature as six Prairie-chickens boomed and battled on their lek. We could see their air sacs expand and hear their ghostly bubbly calls. True magic.
One of the chickens flew away from the lek and towards us as the booming was winding down. I was so happy to get a picture, even if it is incredibly grainy!
Greater Prairie-chickens are unusual-looking birds. I think it is so cool the way their neck feathers pop up to look like ears while displaying. And, of course, their air sacs are wild. These sacs are called “gular sacs,” and are technically throat membranes that they can fill with air. Frigatebirds have the same adaptation.
What an outfit! This pic was taken from the Greater Prairie-chicken Festival Facebook page. Check it out!
It is painful to think that this tiny lek used to be so much bigger, that there used to be so many more leks right around here. Greater Prairie-chickens are well adapted to environmental pressures, but increased heavy rains and unexpected draughts are causing pressure on their offspring. And of course, humans continue to take their habitat. There is a Greater Prairie-chicken festival that occurs every April in Central Wisconsin to increase awareness and appreciation for these incredible birds. I only just learned about it while doing the research for this blog post, but I definitely want to go next year. Sneak preview - there is a person who dresses up in a Greater Prairie-chicken outfit!
Check out the George W. Mead Wildlife Area! Not only did we find the prairie-chickens, we also found a Yellow-rumped Warbler fallout, tons of ducks, and at least fifty Trumpeter Swans. Such a fantastic birding day!
