Prairie Chicken Politics
Who would have thought that one of the iconic symbols of the Illinois Prairie could become a political hot potato? But that’s exactly what happened this year as biologists attempted to boost the crashing population of Greater Prairie Chickens in Illinois.
Some brilliant political strategist tried to paint the Prairie Chicken with the “political boondoggle” brush, only to get splattered in the process. This led to some rancorous debates at the statehouse, and a few editorials wondering why we are spending money on chickens. Once the feathers settled, logic prevailed and folks realized that maintaining Greater Prairie Chicken populations in the “Prairie State” is not only important for the birds, but for countless other species of plants and animals that share the same habitat.
When early settlers streamed into the Illinois country in the early 1800s, they emerged from the eastern forests, and found vast expanses of grassland. No one knows for sure just how many prairie chickens populated the state at that time, but estimates are in the millions. For the first half of the 19th century, prairie chickens were an important source of protein for the subsistence farmers who came to our state.
Prairie chicken populations actually grew as settlers introduced patches of row-crops to the landscape. That was all to change in the later half of the 1800s. It was the efficiency provided of the railroads, along with the productivity of the steel plow that allowed the Illinois prairie to be transformed into farmland. With rail-lines crisscrossing the state, commodities could be moved to market with ease. The steel plow became an efficient tool for turning thick prairie sod into vast acreages of row crops.
The prairie quickly disappeared, and with it went important brood habitat for Greater Prairie Chickens. The rails also brought in streams of easterners who heard of the opportunities to hunt prairie chickens in the far western state of Illinois. This opportunity was promoted extensively by the railways to lure lucrative Eastern wealth into the Western frontier. On the heels of the sports hunter came the market hunter, who would take boxcar loads of prairie chickens back to eastern markets.
Today, the entire Illinois population of Greater Prairie Chickens survives in small flocks in Jasper and Marion counties and is restricted to habitat provided by the Prairie Ridge State Natural Area. This grassland complex was established in the early 1960s and has been added to over the years through acquisitions by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources and the Illinois Audubon Society. If not for the protection of these grasslands, Illinois would have lost prairie chickens by 1970.
There is risk in having only a small population of birds in one location. In the early 1990s, the population dropped to below 100 birds, resulting in severe inbreeding problems. As part of the state’s endangered species recovery plan, 500 birds were translocated from healthy populations in Kansas, Nebraska, and Minnesota between 1992 and 1998. The population remained relatively stable until recent years when torrential spring rains were followed by devastating hailstorms at Prairie Ridge. This was followed by severe drought over a two-year period. Again, the population dropped well below 100 birds.
So starting this summer, translocation was once again being used to replenish the population. Close to 100 more birds were trapped and relocated from the Kansas prairies into Illinois. The funds for the translocation come from federal and state sources that can only be used for recovery projects. The Illinois Audubon Society is raising private funds as well. Over the next two years, the goal is to translocate 200 more birds to Prairie Ridge. This, combined with enhanced habitat management, should help stabilize the population.
It is a shame that some politicians decided to use the noble cause of saving a species from the brink of extinction to make a political point, but the added publicity has brought about more public awareness of the plight of the Prairie Chicken. Illinois Audubon’s fundraising efforts for the project received a boost in the process, and more people are taking time to learn the facts and have come to realize just how amazing this bird really is. Anyone who has visited a prairie chicken booming ground in the early spring and saw their amazing courtship ritual can’t help but fall in love with this species.
Bob Gillespie, a Natural Resources Coordinator with the Illinois Natural History Survey is in charge of the translocation effort. He hopes that next year’s translocations will be as successful as this year’s. Bob will be doing a presentation on the Greater Prairie Chicken recovery effort at 7 p.m. Dec. 10 at Forest Park Nature Center. The program is hosted by the Peoria Audubon Society and is free and open to the public.