Picture by Matt H.
When males go to the booming grounds, they go about 25 minutes before sunrise. They stay for about 2 to 3 hours. Males do a dance to attract females. Males stomp their feet as part of the dance. They also do the flutter jump to show females how big their territory is. They inflate air sacs called "tympani" on their necks that make a booming sound. Then they stick out their neck feathers and spread out their tail feathers like a fan. If you have never seen a prairie chicken stomp their feet, it's very hilarious.
After the females leave the booming grounds, the males walk around and use confrontive crouching to maintain their territories. This means they squat and stare at each other.
Did you know that when males make booming sounds, it's like blowing across the top of an empty pop bottle? Also, three different notes are used to make the booming sound. It can be heard a couple of miles away on a clear day.
Males defend their territories from other male prairie chickens. Most territories are often 100 square feet each.
Did you know that male prairie chickens have orange eyebrows? I didn't even know that they had eyebrows. They also have big bare yellow orange sacs on the sides of their necks called "tympani."
Males never help incubate eggs or raise the chicks, and if you ask me what I think about that, I would say, "How rude!"
