Vo 1 . 16, No, II 
Page 4 
To a large degree, the acceptance by CIPS of a management program for prairie 
chickens may depend on the amount of income that can be realized from cropping 
(redtop seed, soybeans, oats, grazing fees, hay, and similar activities). Most 
of the cropland on the CIPS area will be farmed for income on a sharecropping 
basis until the land is needed for purposes directly involved in production of 
electrical power. The income provided by typical cash-grain farming and moderate 
to heavy grazing would exceed the income produced by redtop farming, limited grain 
farming, and grazing. Also, it is not known whether the necessary funds and man¬ 
power could be made available for prescribed burning, control of woody vegetation, 
and prairie seedings. 
One of the primary benefits to be gained by CIPS in establishing prairie 
chickens on their area would be an enhancement of their public image as an 
environmentally concerned company. On the basis of current population levels 
on the sanctuaries at Bogota, it seems likely that the proposed management units 
on the CIPS area could support a spring population of at least 100 prairie chicken 
cocks. This number of birds may not seem commensurate with the amount of habitat 
management necessary to establish them on the area. However, the more widely 
this native grouse can be established, the greater the chances for its ultimate 
preservation in Illinois. 
