A Prairie Chicken



371



A PRAIRIE CHICKEN.


RAISED FROM CAPTIVE LAID EGGS.


By John C. Phillips.


Early in 1912 two pairs of Prairie chickens (Tympanuchus

americanus ) were received from the West. Owing to lack of room,

one pair was confined to a small movable pen, while the other had

the run of rather a large low cage built in a secluded spot in the

woods. Its dimensions were 25 ft. by 12 ft., and it was 3oft. high.


On May 12th the male from the more fortunately situated

pair was heard booming, a very interesting sound, but all attempts

to view him failed, as approach to the pen was rather noisy.


By May 15th booming was quite constant, and I was able to

get a good look at the performer.


On June 12th the hen bird was found dead, with a nest-full

of ten eggs, all of which were placed under a brooding hen. The

diagnosis, made by Dr. L. E. Tyzzer, of the Harvard Cancer Com¬

mission, was amoebiasis with peritonitis. The male bird died two

days later and was found to have been suffering from the same

disease.


On July 9th or 10th, five chicks hatched from the ten eggs.

Three died after short periods, but the other two were coaxed along,

although they were very feeble at first and required constant care

and feeding. They had a large space to themselves with a very

amiable bantam hen.


One of these two chicks lived only for a week, but the other

survived and prospered. He was extremely active and showed

an omnivorous taste, pouncing without discrimination on all sorts

and sizes of insects, moths, butterflies and grasshoppers. He was

fed on scalded house-flies and chopped worms, besides an ordinary

pheasant diet, and in time grew extremely tame ; in fact I never

saw a tamer bird. Anyone could pick him up, and when tossed in

the air he would flutter down near one’s feet. He was never pinioned.


No definite notes were taken as to assumption of plumage

and behaviour, but I well recall that the youngster had a rather

monotonous whistle, somewhat like that of a young turkey, which

he frequently practised while perched upon his brooder coop.



