Home on the Range: Breeding Biology of Prairie-Chickens-Jackie Augustine, PhD, ExDir Audubon of KS
Schedule
Thu, 08 Aug, 2024 at 07:00 pm
Location
Unitarian Church | Lincoln, NE
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A t one time, the eerie hollow moaning of male prairie-chickens displaying on their spring “booming grounds” was a common sound across much of central and eastern North America. Today the prairiechickens are quite uncommon and localized; the race on the Atlantic seaboard, called the heath hen, became extinct in 1932. Greater prairie-chickens still thrive on a few areas of native grassland in the Midwest. Some individuals are permanent residents, others may move between breeding and wintering areas, traveling as much as 100 miles. There are no obvious or consistent differences in habitat between breeding and wintering sites. Prime original habitat apparently was where prairie was intermixed with oak woodland. Today prairie-chickens are found in areas of tallgrass prairie (especially native prairie, now a rare type), including places where such habitat is interspersed with agricultural fields. Loss of habitat is the greatest threat to remaining populations in the interior. These avians put on quite a show, making a hollow "booming" call during their mating display. They also make cackle and clucking sounds. These birds are similar to greater sage-grouse and sharp-tailed grouse. At Wachiska’s August meeting, Jackie Augustine will discuss the biology of greater and lesser prairie-chickens, two species she has been studying for over 20 years. These charismatic birds perform impressive displays to gain mating opportunities. Come hear about the last stretches of prairie, the antics of prairiechickens, and the challenges of studying and conserving these declining species. Dr. Jackie Augustine joined Audubon of Kansas (AOK) in January 2021 as executive director. She received her PhD in biology at Kansas State University studying the mating behavior of greater prairie-chickens. She then joined the faculty at The Ohio State University-Lima and began her annual migration to western Kansas to study prairie-chickens with her graduate students. Their work focused on the mechanisms of species isolation in the hybrid zone between greater and lesser prairiechickens. As executive director, Jackie works to support AOK's three-fold mission of advocacy, conservation, and education including organizing A t one time, the eerie hollow moaning of male prairie-chickens displaying on their spring “booming grounds” was a common sound across much of central and eastern North America. Today the prairiechickens are quite uncommon and localized; the race on the Atlantic seaboard, called the heath hen, became extinct in 1932. Greater prairie-chickens still thrive on a few areas of native grassland in the Midwest. Some individuals are permanent residents, others may move between breeding and wintering areas, traveling as much as 100 miles. There are no obvious or consistent differences in habitat between breeding and wintering sites. Prime original habitat apparently was where prairie was intermixed with oak woodland. Today prairie-chickens are found in areas of tallgrass prairie (especially native prairie, now a rare type), including places where such habitat is interspersed with agricultural fields. Loss of habitat is the greatest threat to remaining populations in the interior. These avians put on quite a show, making a hollow "booming" call during their mating display. They also make cackle and clucking sounds. These birds are similar to greater sage-grouse and sharp-tailed grouse. At Wachiska’s August meeting, Jackie Augustine will discuss the biology of greater and lesser prairie-chickens, two species she has been studying for over 20 years. These charismatic birds perform impressive displays to gain mating opportunities. Come hear about the last stretches of prairie, the antics of prairiechickens, and the challenges of studying and conserving these declining species. Dr. Jackie Augustine joined Audubon of Kansas (AOK) in January 2021 as executive director. She received her PhD in biology at Kansas State University studying the mating behavior of greater prairie-chickens. She then joined the faculty at The Ohio State University-Lima and began her annual migration to western Kansas to study prairie-chickens with her graduate students. Their work focused on the mechanisms of species isolation in the hybrid zone between greater and lesser prairiechickens. As executive director, Jackie works to support AOK's three-fold mission of advocacy, conservation, and education including organizing AOK's annual Kansas Lek Treks PrairieChicken Festival. She is also a birdwatcher and devoted to providing native plants around her home. Join Wachiska on Thursday, August 8, at 7:00 p.m. at Lincoln’s Unitarian Church for this free, public, in-person talk which will also be live-streamed at https://youtube.com/live/ Zh6id6LsW1o?feature=share. No registration is needed. This program can be viewed at a later time. Check Wachiska’s website for links to past programs. Editor’s Note: Portions of the above description of prairie-chickens were found on National Audubon’s website annual Kansas Lek Treks PrairieChicken Festival. She is also a birdwatcher and devoted to providing native plants around her home.Join Wachiska on Thursday, August 8, at 7:00 p.m. at Lincoln’s Unitarian Church for this free, public, in-person talk which will also be live-streamed at https://youtube.com/live/ Zh6id6LsW1o?feature=share. No registration is needed. This program can be viewed at a later time. Check Wachiska’s you for links to past programs. Editor’s Note: Portions of the above description of prairie-chickens were found on National Audubon’s website
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