Uploaded March 2018 | Updated September 2026, 20 minutes ago
When lesser prairie-chickens mate, the action starts early. Before dawn in April and May, males stomp their feet in the grass like they’re warming up for a track meet. As they dance, they inflate bright red air sacs on the sides of their necks and raise feathered neck tufts. With these displays and a chorus of warbling squawks, the males chase and fight each other in an attempt to win the right to mate with as many females as they can. These impressive performances have made the birds the stars of an annual lesser prairie chicken festival each April—and the poster species for an imperiled ecosystem. Learn more about these beloved birds of the American Great Plains—and their fight for survival—by reading the full bioGraphic story: bit.ly/2HvGntR.
Video by Day's Edge Productions
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Discover more beautiful and surprising stories about nature and sustainability at biographic.com
* Facebook: biographic.magazine
* Instagram: @biographic_magazine
* Twitter: @bioGraphic
When lesser prairie-chickens mate, the action starts early. Before dawn in April and May, males stomp their feet in the grass like they’re warming up for a track meet. As they dance, they inflate bright red air sacs on the sides of their necks and raise feathered neck tufts. With these displays and a chorus of warbling squawks, the males chase and fight each other in an attempt to win the right to mate with as many females as they can. These impressive performances have made the birds the stars of an annual lesser prairie chicken festival each April—and the poster species for an imperiled ecosystem. Learn more about these beloved birds of the American Great Plains—and their fight for survival—by reading the full bioGraphic story: bit.ly/2HvGntR.
Video by Day's Edge Productions
------
Discover more beautiful and surprising stories about nature and sustainability at biographic.com
* Facebook: biographic.magazine
* Instagram: @biographic_magazine
* Twitter: @bioGraphic
