Birdwatching Vacation: Birds of the American plains

There are many birds living on the prairie in America. Many birds migrate and stay awhile on the plains in the spring and autumn, then leave when winter arrives. Most birds leave when the cold winter months come, as the cold can become very intense. Some birds are native to these plains and can handle the changes in seasons and in temperatures.

The red-tailed hawk (Butero jamaicensis) resembles the common buzzard of western Europe (Buteo buteo). These hawks have been called buzzards but are hawks. The length of this hawk is around twenty-six inches. It has brown on the upper part of the body and has thin lines on the wings. The shoulders and neck have white spots and the tail is red with a white tip. On this white tip there are black marks on the underside with the feet being yellow. Their diet consists of rodents, smaller ground animals, birds, some insects and occasionally bats. It will eat snakes, even venomous ones as it does not have any preferences in choices of snakes.

You will see clumps of sagebrush on the plains with stout-bodied large birds strutting. These silver-grey shrubs are called sage grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus). They can grow as long as twenty-eight inches, have upper parts of greyish-brown with white marks, black belly, white chest, and a ruff of white feathers. The tail on the sage grouse will be stiff and long and look almost like a fan. The male of the species will have orange air-sacks. The sharp-tailed grouse (Pedioecetes phasianellus) will have a length of almost eighteen inches. The color is light brown with white streaks. The eyes of the male sharp-tailed grouse has yellow caruncles.

If you happen to be on the prairie in the spring hopefully you will see the birds gather, and see a pecking order established. The males like to show off in front of the females and show which one is the strongest of the lot. They can become very violent as each cock puts on a fashion show to establish his place in the pecking order. The hen will pick her mate due to his beauty and strength. The females will swell their air-sacs on the neck, then take steps sideways to deflate them making a sound almost like a drum. Females usually choice the male with the best sites for mating. The males will make booming calls till they have finished coupling with the females. The hens lay brownish-olive eggs usually eight at one time and will incubate them for twenty-two days in a nest in tufts of sagebrush. They are remarkable in their feeding from the shoots and leaf of the sagebrush, also for their courtship by the sagebrush.

The prairie chicken is smaller than the sage grouse. It looks somewhat like the domestic fowl. The chestnut plumage appears flecked with white on the back and lower parts are greyish and have black bars. The female has colors that are lighter than the male. The tail is round and short. When this bird excites the long feathers that usually lay flat on the neck will stand up on either side of the had.

One prairie chicken is named the great prairie chicken (Tympanuchus cupido) and grows to eighteen inches. The wings are flecked with white and the upper parts of the body are brown with black bars. Black bars appear on the greyish lower parts. During breeding season the male's tuff of ornamental tail feathers will stand erect. The air-sacs are orange. The lesser prairie chicken (Tympanuchus pallidicinctus) and grows to ten inches. This chicken looks somewhat as the greater prairie chicken but is more pale and smaller. The air-sacs and eye caruncles are yellowish.

When they perform nuptial dances they are very much like the dances of the sage grouse. The males will stand at attention and be very still then they begin the dance of stamping feet and twisting bodies in small circles. The air-sacs emit a booming that can echo for miles. This can go on for weeks and always before sunrise. Sometimes a cock will look as if it is totally mad as it will run and appear to be in combat with wings fluttering. By this dance the males will establish their territories and pecking order. The females will pick the males with the best territories as the sage grouses. When mating completes the females will have a nest on the ground. She lays about sixteen light brown with red speckled eggs The nest has the protection of brush. The eggs will incubate for twenty-three days then hatch.

There are species of quails and partridges on the plains. They are of the subfamily Odontophorinae. The bill is very strong as the upper part is toothed and has a very sharp edge. The plumage is a combination of brownish-red and white with short tails and a lack of spurs on the tarsi. Five species of quail live on the prairie. The bobwhite (Colinus virginianus) has a white throat and bands of white on sides of his head. The mountain quail (Oreotyx picus) has the same colorings as the bobwhite.

The whooping crane (Grus americana) used to be in abundance on the plains but now you will seldom see one of these handsome birds. This bird is large with a powerful bill and a long neck with a deep, melancholy cry. The sandhill crane (Grus canadensis) has grey plumage and seems to have survived better than the whooping crane.

The trumpeter swan (Cygnus buccinator) is also a threatened species. This is a bird that is not only beautiful but has a loud cry. The length extends to fifty-eight inches.

The Eskimo curlew (Numenius borealis) grows to fourteen inches. It has brown plumage with black flecs. The bill curves at the tip, the body has brown plumage with black marks and greenish feet.

The prairie falcon (Falco mexicanus) lives on the grasslands of the plains. Nests are built on ravines, rocks or hills so that it can spot prey from a distance. The plumage is mixed white, black and brown. It will attack small animals such as prairie dogs and the white-throated swift (Aeronautes saxatalis) and is an excellent hunter. During the winter they will live on high ground then return to the plains.

There are many other birds that live on the prairie such as the American sparrowhawk (falco- sparverius), and many migrating birds. Ornithologists have done many studies on the birds of the plains as their journeys.