Prairie chickens are an iconic species of the North American prairie ecosystem. They belong to the grouse family and include two main species: the greater prairie chicken and the lesser prairie chicken. Though their populations have declined significantly, prairie chickens play several important roles in the prairie landscape.
What are prairie chickens?
Prairie chickens are medium-sized birds in the grouse family. They live exclusively in prairie habitats. There are two main species:
– Greater prairie chicken: Slightly larger and darker in color. Historically widespread across prairies from Canada to Texas.
– Lesser prairie chicken: Smaller and paler. Found in more arid prairies of the southern Great Plains.
Both species exhibit spectacular breeding displays where males gather on communal leks and compete for mates through booming calls and ritualized dances. Their coloration helps provide camouflage in the prairie grasses.
Why were prairie chickens once so abundant?
Prairie chickens evolved as part of the prairie ecosystem of central North America over thousands of years. Vast grasslands provided ideal habitat for these ground-nesting birds. Early explorers of the Great Plains recorded seeing prairie chicken flocks so dense they darkened the sky. Conservative estimates place their historical population at tens of millions. Key factors that allowed prairie chickens to thrive included:
– Vast tracts of native prairie grasses and wildflowers
– Periodic disturbances like wildfires and bison grazing that maintained diverse vegetation structure
– Abundant insects and seeds for forage
– Low numbers of predators in treeless landscapes
With the prairie largely intact prior to Euro-American settlement, prairie chickens had abundant high-quality habitat available to support very large populations across their range.
Why have prairie chicken populations declined?
Unfortunately, prairie chicken numbers have declined precipitously since the 1800s. The main causes include:
– Widespread conversion of prairies to cropland: Over 90% of tallgrass prairie habitat has been lost. This removes nesting cover and food sources.
– Fragmentation of remaining habitat: Small, isolated fragments have higher nest predation and are more prone to population extinctions.
– Introduced non-native grasses: These reduce floristic diversity and insect availability.
– Increasing predation: Fragmentation and land use changes benefit predators like foxes, raccoons, and skunks.
– Lack of periodic fire: Fire suppression causes woody encroachment and build up of dense litter.
– Oil and gas development: Infrastructure, disturbance, and habitat fragmentation associated with energy extraction impact prairie chickens.
– Climate change: Likely exacerbates other threats like fragmentation, nest predation, and woody encroachment.
With prairie loss exceeding 90% in some areas, prairie chicken populations unsurprisingly parallel this decline. Most remaining birds live in isolated fragments of suitable habitat.
Ecological importance
Though reduced in number, prairie chickens still play vital ecological roles in the prairies where they persist.
Prey species
Prairie chickens are an important prey species for a diversity of prairie predators. Medium-sized carnivores like foxes, coyotes, raccoons, and raptors all consume prairie chickens, especially eggs and chicks. Juveniles and adults also fall prey. Though challenging to quantify, the ecological services provided by prairie chickens as a food source likely have high value.
Influence on vegetation
Prairie chickens influence prairie vegetation through their grazing, foraging, and behaviors. Features like leks can create localized habitat disturbance. Through their food habits and digestions, prairie chickens also disperse native plant seeds. Areas with prairie chickens tend to have higher diversity and heterogeneity of native prairie plants.
Nutrient cycling
As prey and through their droppings, prairie chickens help cycle nutrients through prairie systems. Predators that consume prairie chickens spread those nutrients across the landscape. Grazing and foraging by prairie chickens also shifts nutrients from plants to the soil.
Ecosystem engineering
Some research suggests prairie chickens participate in ecosystem engineering. Through their scratching and dusting behaviors, they may help incorporate litter into soils, shift microbial communities, and influence water infiltration rates. More study is needed, but prairie chickens may provide important disturbance that contributes to prairie ecosystem function.
Umbrella species
Conserving prairie chicken habitat provides protection for many other prairie-dependent species. Though they have specific needs themselves, prairie chickens serve as an “umbrella species.” Protecting sufficient habitat for prairie chickens inherently conserves habitat for a broad array of plants, insects, mammals, birds, amphibians, and reptiles linked to prairie ecosystems.
Cultural importance
In addition to their ecological significance, prairie chickens have special meaning to many human cultures and communities.
Tribes
For tribes like the Osage, Kaw, Ponca, and Omaha who historically inhabited the Great Plains, prairie chickens held cultural and spiritual significance. Their feathers were used in headdresses and ceremonial regalia. Their meat provided nourishment. And their seasonal cycles helped mark time’s passage. Conservation of prairie chickens today continues to hold meaning for many tribes.
Hunters
Prairie chickens provide exciting hunting opportunities on the Great Plains. As populations rebounded from near extinction in the 1930s, regulated hunting seasons were established. For hunters today, pursuing prairie chickens in the spring and fall links to long cultural traditions of subsistence and sport. Hunters also pay licensing fees that support habitat conservation.
Birders
Watching the elaborate mating rituals of prairie chicken leks is a highly sought experience for birding enthusiasts. The opportunity to observe these birds displaying in the prairie sunrise creates economic incentives to protect habitat. Responsible wildlife tourism centered on prairie chickens can inject money into rural economies.
Rural communities
Efforts to conserve prairie chickens boost pride, identity, and ecotourism potential in nearby rural communities. Annual prairie chicken festivals celebrate the cultural heritage around this iconic species. And conserving prairie chicken habitat aligns with community values of protecting the ranching and farming heritage intrinsic to remaining prairies.
Conservation importance
Because of their precipitous declines, prairie chickens now represent high priority species for ongoing conservation.
Legal protections
The greater prairie chicken is federally protected under the Endangered Species Act as “threatened.” The lesser prairie chicken was listed from 2014-2016 but this status was later removed. Many states additionally have regulations around hunting, take, and habitat impacts to prairie chickens. Legal protections aim to preclude extinction and support population recoveries.
Habitat initiatives
Numerous initiatives strive to conserve and restore prairie chicken habitat across their range. Strategies include enrolling land in the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP), purchasing easements, and establishing safe harbor agreements with landowners to voluntarily manage lands in prairie-chicken friendly ways.
Translocation
Wildlife agencies have undertaken efforts to translocate wild prairie chickens into suitable but unoccupied habitat fragments. By supplementing small populations, this aims to increase genetic heterozygosity and long-term viability.
Monitoring
Extensive monitoring tracks prairie chicken population trends and habitat use over time. This informs adaptive management, evaluates success, and helps target conservation resources. Technologies like radio-telemetry are unveiling new insights into prairie chicken ecology and needs.
Integrated planning
Conservation groups advocate for property development, energy infrastructure, and transportation plans that safeguard key intact prairie chicken habitat and minimize further fragmentation. This landscape-scale planning considers prairie chickens as part of balancing conservation and economic progress.
Threats and challenges
Despite their importance, prairie chickens face serious ongoing challenges.
Habitat loss
Prime prairie chicken habitat continues to be degraded and converted for agriculture, energy development, and other human infrastructure. Most remaining habitat occurs in a highly fragmented state. Additional habitat losses must be minimized.
Nest predation
High rates of nest predation from species like raccoons, skunks, foxes, and coyotes reduce reproductive success. Fragmentation exacerbates this threat. Predator control remains controversial but may sometimes be warranted where predation risks override.
Climate change
Changing climatic conditions could create increasing challenges for prairie chickens. Modeling suggests hotter, drier summers may reduce survival and reproduction. Extreme weather events also threaten population stability.
Disease
Prairie chickens face threats from West Nile Virus, avian cholera, and other diseases. While overall impacts remain uncertain, conserving genetic diversity provides resilience. Isolated fragments have higher risks.
Demographic stochasticity
Small population sizes make prairie chickens vulnerable to extinction vortexes. Random mortality events or skewed sex ratios can spiral populations downward. Boosting connectivity and numbers provides protection.
Energy development
Oil and gas, wind, solar, and transmission infrastructure have large impacts in remaining strongholds for prairie chickens. Development must be channeled away from intact habitats and minimized in sensitive areas.
Lack of funding
Habitat conservation and restoration for prairie chickens is chronically underfunded. Higher investments through Farm Bill programs like CRP and by states are essential to maintain habitats.
Changing politics
Shifting political priorities and rollbacks of regulations like the ESA threaten progress made for prairie chicken recovery. Sustained committed action over decades will be required.
Conclusion
In conclusion, prairie chickens play vital ecological roles in prairie ecosystems, provide cultural meanings to people, and require ongoing conservation efforts. While facing serious challenges, coordinated commitment to protecting habitat, managing key threats, maintaining protections, and increasing funding offers hope for the future of both prairie chickens and the prairie landscape itself. The fates of prairie chickens and prairies remain linked, so efforts that benefit prairie chickens ultimately help conserve North America’s iconic grassland heritage.
References
McNew, L.B., Gregory, A.J., Wisely, S.M. and Sandercock, B.K., 2012. Demography of greater prairie‐chickens: Regional variation in vital rates, sensitivity values, and population dynamics. The Journal of Wildlife Management, 76(5), pp.987-1000.
Haukos, D.A. and Zavaleta, J.C., 2016. Habitat. In Ecology and conservation of lesser prairie-chickens (pp. 99-132). CRC Press.
Johnsgard, P.A., 2002. Grassland grouse and their conservation. Smithsonian Institution Press.
Silvy, N.J. and Hagen, C.A., 2004. Introduction: management of imperiled prairie grouse species and their habitat. Wildlife Society Bulletin, 32(1), pp.2-5.
Svedarsky, W.D., Westemeier, R.L., Robel, R.J., Gough, S. and Toepfer, J.E., 2000. Status and management of the greater prairie-chicken Tympanuchus cupido pinnatus in North America. Wildlife Biology, 6(4), pp.277-284.
Hovick, T.J., Elmore, R.D., Fuhlendorf, S.D. and Dahlgren, D.K., 2015. Weather constrains the influence of fire and grazing on nesting greater prairie‐chickens. Ecology, 96(3), pp.696-705.
McNew, L.B., Winder, V.L., Pitman, J.C. and Sandercock, B.K., 2015. Alternative rangeland management strategies and the nesting ecology of greater prairie‐chickens. Rangeland Ecology & Management, 68(3), pp.298-304.
Van Pelt, W.E., Kyle, S., Pitman, J., Klute, D., Beauprez, G., Schoeling, D., Janus, A. and Haufler, J., 2013. The Lesser Prairie-Chicken Range-wide Conservation Plan. Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies. Cheyenne, Wyoming, p.173.
Year | Population Estimate |
---|---|
1810 | 13 million (greater) |
1890 | 1 million (greater) |
2019 | 38,000 (greater) |
1810 | 2 million (lesser) |
2019 | 57,000 (lesser) |
State | 2019 Population Estimate |
---|---|
Kansas | 19,000 lesser |
Colorado | 6,500 lesser |
Oklahoma | 24,000 lesser |
New Mexico | 1,500 lesser |
Texas | 33,000 lesser |
South Dakota | 7,000 greater |
Nebraska | 3,300 greater |
Kansas | 1,900 greater |
Minnesota | 650 greater |