440 FIELD MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY ZOOLOGY, VOL. IX. 



Length, about 17 ; wing, 8 to 9; bill (end of nostril to tip), .50. 



The Prairie Hen was formerly very abundant in Illinois and Wis- 

 consin and is still not uncommon in prairie lands of the less settled 

 portions. Breeds in May in open prairies and fields. The eggs are 

 ten to fourteen, olive buff or greenish gray in color, usually unmarked 

 but occasionally finely specked with brown. They measure about 

 1.65 x 1.22 inches. 



Regarding the curious "booming" sounds made by the cock bird 

 and its strange antics during the mating season, Mr. Frank M. Chap- 

 man writes as follows: "At short range the bird's note suggested the 

 mellow resonant tone of a kettledrum. * * * * 



"As a rule each bird had its own stand separated by about ten 

 yards from that of his neighbor. The boom is apparently a challenge. 

 It is preceded by a little dance in which the bird's feet pat the ground 

 so rapidly as to produce a rolling sound. This cannot be heard at 

 a greater distance than thirty yards. It is immediately followed by 

 the inflation of the great orange air sacks at the side of the neck, which 

 puff out as quickly as a child's toy balloon whistle; the tail is erected 

 and widely spread, the wings drooped, the neck-tufts are raised 

 straight upward, giving the bird a singularly devilish look, then with a 

 convulsive movement of the lowered head the boom is jerked out and 

 at its conclusion the air sacks have become deflated. 



"One might imagine that after so violent a performance the bird 

 would feel a certain sense of exhaustion or at least quiescent relief, 

 but his excess of vitality seeks still other outlets. Uttering hen-like 

 calls and cracks he suddenly springs a foot or more straight into the 

 air, whirling about as though he were suffering from a combined 

 attack of epilepsy and St. Vitus's dance. 



"But all this activity is only a prelude to the grand finale of actual 

 combat. Like a strutting turkey cock, the neighboring birds go 

 toward each other by short little runs, head down, the orange eyebrow- 

 expanded and evident, pouches inflated, neck tufts and tail straight 

 up, and looking like headless birds with two tails. Their meeting is 

 followed by no make-believe duel, but an actual clash of wings. Utter- 

 ing a low, whining note they fight as viciously as game-cocks, and the 

 number of feathers left on the ground testifies to effective use of bills 

 and claws." (The Outing Magazine, November, 1908, p. 224.) 



