Wisconsin's Prairie Chickens
Habitat
The
fate and future of the greater prairie chicken in Wisconsin is tied to effective
management of its habitat: securing the land they need allows these birds to
manage their own survival remarkably well.
The term "extirpation" often is used when discussing prairie chicken
survival. This means the bird is gone from a specific area, typically a
state, but is present elsewhere; it is uprooted but not extinct.
Threatened extirpation of these birds has had more to do with loss of dependable
grassland - be it oak barrens or prairie - than many lifetimes of hunting.
Original prairie chicken range consisted of the prairie/savanna area
of southern Wisconsin. Today the birds are found only in central Wisconsin on
the Buena Vista Grassland where careful management provides protected grassland
habitat.
Buena Vista Grassland
The area that today constitutes the premiere property in Wisconsin's
Prairie Chicken Management Program once was part of the "great marshes" of
central Wisconsin. In the early 1900s, draining and ditching transformed
Buena Vista Marsh into pasture, grass seed fields, and cropland. The
WDNR-managed portions, now called Buena Vista Grasslands and totaling more than
11,000 acres, were acquired in a scatter pattern of ownership referred to as
"ecological patterning." Today, over 15,000 acres have been acquired for
prairie chicken management, thanks in large part to the people and organizations
who stepped in to preserve the last fading voice of the prairie wilderness.
Re-creating this grassland before it was
too late became the goal of WDNR wildlife biologists. Today, Wisconsin's
Prairie Chicken Management program is recognized throughout the United States as
a successful model of habitat management. Many states to the east no
longer have prairie chickens. For Missouri, Minnesota and the few other
states
where prairie chickens still exist in sizable numbers, Wisconsin is "holding the
line" against the westward march of extirpation.
More than three decades of habitat restoration and land-use research
at the Buena Vista Grassland have helped scientists and conservationists across
the country understand what it takes to protect this threatened species.
For the greater prairie chicken, this means constantly testing the mix and blend
of landscapes that make up the habitat - grasslands, cropland, pasture and woods
- where the bird must be able to survive.
The greater prairie chicken relies on a
combination of open field and lowland cover. Mating rituals - that dawn
performance of booming males and interested females - require an unobstructed
view as male birds jockey for dominance and attention. After
breeding, suitable grassland with plenty of insects and a measure of security
from predators is required for nesting and raising young. Habitat
management makes certain the prairie chicken range can support these most basic
needs.
The change of seasons also plays a role in prairie chicken survival.
The greater prairie chicken in Wisconsin was once somewhat migratory, and a few
birds moved south into Illinois for the winter where conditions were milder.
Now, because of the isolation of the remaining grassland habitat, the birds stay
in central Wisconsin year-round.
Adapting
as well as they can to the rigors of snow and cold, the flocks seek shelter in
undisturbed grass and brush, feeding on natural weed seeds and in crop fields,
whether harvested or not. On occasion, during winter, prairie chickens can
be seen perched in aspen trees feeding on buds.
Holding the line in central Wisconsin
involves the use of several effective methods of land management to maintain
ideal grassland habitat for the prairie chickens and other wildlife.
Management practices include fire, farming and grazing. These methods,
used on WDNR-managed lands within the prairie chicken range, produce a variety
of important vegetation responses to grassland disturbance.
