probably be detrimental, but alfalfa was the least used of the 

 cultivated legumes. Large numbers of greater prairie chickens do 

 not occur in Kansas where less than two-thirds of the land is in 

 native grass. Under such conditions, prairie chickens could hardly 

 cause an appreciable loss of forage that was intended for cattle. 



Fortunately, these facts are recognized by many farmers in areas 

 where the greater prairie chicken occurs. These farmers recognize 

 that much of the grain eaten by prairie chickens would otherwise 

 be wasted. Even in 1949, when the population of the greater prairie 

 chicken was high, few farmers interviewed complained of damage 

 by it. Most farmers were interested in the welfare of the greater 

 prairie chicken or at least tolerant of it. 



There has been a tendency on the part of some authors to justify 

 the presence of birds on the basis of the number of insects, detri- 

 mental to agriculture, consumed. This justification has had much 

 to do with the widespread acceptance of birds as desirable. It is 

 true that, in the aggregate, birds consume large quantities of insects. 

 It is equally true that insects are adapted, by their reproductive 

 capacity, to furnish this food for birds and other predators, with- 

 out their numbers being unduly reduced. Lack (1951:443) points 

 out that birds should not be regarded as harmful or beneficial unless 

 the eflFects of birds on their food supply are known. In the Hght of 

 present knowledge, it seems that we should regard any one species 

 as a part of the integrated web of living things (the biota), and 

 evaluate each species according to its net worth, whether this value 

 be economic, esthetic or recreational. Viewed in this perspective, 

 prairie chickens are eminently desirable, for they possess great 

 esthetic appeal as part of a greatly diminished prairie biota, they 

 provide a source of recreation for many hunters and are at least 

 neutral in relation to agriculture as now practiced. 



Population Changes of the Greater Prairie Chicken 



A preliminary report (Baker, 1952) summarizes a part of the 

 information gathered in this study concerning population changes 

 of the greater prairie chicken in Kansas. According to Stene 

 (1946:9), prairie chickens were given protection by the first Kan- 

 sas Legislature in 1861. This act, providing a closed season on 

 prairie chickens, partridge and turkey, presumably reflected a deple- 

 tion that had already occurred in the numbers of these birds. Com- 

 mon carriers were made liable for transporting illegal game in 1876. 



The year 1903 marks the first time that an open season was not 

 held throughout the State. The major points in the regulation of 



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