246 BULLETIN 16 2, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM 



dancers at a height of about 3 feet. Like so many feathered bombs, the 

 chickens scattered to right and left, and in an instant the dancing ground was 

 deserted. No attempt was made by the disturber to follow any of the revelers. 



Nesting. — The nest of the prairie chicken is invariably on the 

 ground, but the character of the vegetation in which it is built reveals 

 considerable individual variation. Generally the nesting site is 

 among grasses and weeds or low shrubbery in very open situations, 

 but sometimes it may be adjacent to trees and woodlands and in rare 

 instances may be surrounded by trees of considerable size. The vege- 

 tation about the nest is usually very thick and effectively conceals 

 the eggs and the incubating bird from view. It also serves as a 

 protection from extremes of temperature. There are sometimes 

 killing frosts during the nesting season, in May, and there are many 

 days in June when the heat is great enough to kill the embryos if left 

 exposed to the direct rays of the sun for any great length of time. 



The nest is placed in a natural hollow of the ground, or a slight 

 excavation may be made by the bird by scratching out the loose 

 earth and then molding the cavity to conform to the size and shape 

 of the body. In this cavity the bird places a scant quantity of nest- 

 ing material, in some instances the nest lining being little more than 

 the bent-over blades and weeds growing about the structure. 



The following descriptions serve to represent the character of the 

 nesting site as well as the nature and construction of the nests built 

 in three different types and situations located in central Wisconsin : 

 A prairie-chicken nest containing 17 eggs was found 4 miles south- 

 east of Bancroft, Portage County, on June 4, 1929, in a small clear- 

 ing of a jack-pine grove, the trees of which ranged from 35 to 50 

 feet in height. The trees of the clearing had been cut the year 

 before and piles of brush left in place. Some of the brush was more 

 or less hidden by the rank growth of grass and weeds which had 

 sprung up around it. The nest, built in a very shallow depression. 

 4 centimeters deep and 18 by 20 centimeters in diameter, was near 

 one of the piles of brush. Some of the smaller branches were arched 

 over the nest when found. It was protected by the brush on one 

 side, but on the other it w T as well exposed to view, a condition very 

 favorable for observations and photography from the blind that was 

 later placed in position. Several of the pine trees were so near that 

 they provided shade for the nest during certain hours of the day. 

 Although this nest was not built in the usual surroundings, it is 

 interesting to note that there were extensive marshlands all about 

 the site. 



In the drainage area of Wisconsin there are isolated areas of high 

 ground locally called " islands," a name originating from the days 

 before the drainage ditches, when they were in reality " islands " 



