Chickens on Winter Wheat

Chickens on Winter Wheat

Greater Prairie Chickens are an extremely difficult quarry to take with a longwing in North America. Everything about them is difficult. From simply locating them to taking one in falconry  is a challenge all the way through.

Chickens are a grouse species that occupies a swath of North American prairie, stretching from North Dakota to Oklahoma. As their habitat has slowly been shaved, carved, degraded, and fragmented, so has their population. The core that remains is centered in Nebraska. Kansas has a fair population but, in  my opinion, is on its way out. The only area that contains stable or possibly increasing populations is the northwest corner of Kansas. Even there, a glance from the satellite imaging  will tell you the intact prairie is limited to the riverbreaks. Like fingertips reaching down from the palm of Nebraska's sandhills, they remain a final holdout for the chickens of Kansas.

While their range covers hundreds of thousands of square miles, finding a flock of chickens requires either luck, or an intimate understanding of their habits. The best way to locate them is by their leks, and unless it's March, the only way  to do that is with burned boot leather or a satellite map. Prairie chickens,  especially males,  will frequent leks year round. They can be very  predictable by this habit, particularly in Spring and in Fall when photo periods are similar. Visiting these hallowed grounds allows them to socialize, practice their dance moves, and establish a pecking order for breeding rights. Some leks are on winter wheat. Winter wheat is planted in late Summer, sprouts  in early Fall, and remains lawngrass short until Spring. These nearly barren hilltops occasionally overlap with leks and birds will congregate there, soaking up the first few rays of sun in the morning. The lack of cover provides an extra challenge when hunting them with a falcon. Occasionally, they can be bumped from the lek into flyable cover and be relocated. But as anyone who has flown grouse knows, they often fly out of sight and to attempt to fly grouse on speculation is asking for trouble.

Prairie chickens are acutely aware of when they've been seen. The trick is to make them feel like they haven't been, until it's too late. With man and a falcon, chickens perceive two threats. One  from the ground and one from the air. The principles that guide their survival are similar, but do  have their differences. With humans, they know that all they need is a little distance to neutralize the threat. To evade a falcon requires the same but it's harder to do. They will use timing, speed, agility, bluffing, topography, and wind to escape.

To make a winter wheat slip work, a few criteria should be met. The falcon needs to be released from a hidden position upwind of the grouse. If the chickens feel the falcon is coming for them in level flight, they will begrudgingly leave, well ahead of the falcon. Occasionally, if testosterone is running high, or they do not feel particularly threatened by the approaching falcon, they will make the falcon miss on the ground and only leave if they have to. I have even seen Prairie Falcons sitting on fence posts only a few feet away from dancing chickens. I have also seen Northern Harriers sitting amongst chickens on a lek. Either way, the flight will be ruined if the grouse are disturbed before the flight is properly orchestrated. Ideally, the falcon ignores the chickens standing or laying down in plain sight while they climb and gain advantage.

If grouse perceive a threat coming from the ground, they will not allow themselves to  be pinned by a climbing falcon. If they see a car approaching or a human walking towards them while the falcon is not in perfect position, they will use this opportunity to leave. If a falcon is high enough and in position over the chickens, they might hold even though they can see the human.

To get multiple flushes off a winter wheat lek, the falconer must do their best to drop out of sight of the remaining grouse. That means either laying down flat, or retreating below the crest of the hill. With the falcon out of position and chasing the first chickens to flush, the stragglers will crane their heads to see of the coast is clear. If they see the falconer at that point, they will leave. The more frequently they are flown in this situation, the less forgiving they will be of any missteps.

The ideal set up for flying a winter wheat lek is as follows. It is cold, crisp morning with a light breeze. The difference in wind speed between where the falcon will wait on and ground is minimal. There are at least several grouse on the lek. It has been at least two weeks since this lek was flown. The earlier in the day the better as their fidelity to the site is the strongest at that point. The falcon is released from a hidden position upwind of the lek. The approach to the lek is also  hidden, allowing the falconer to place themselves just out of sight as the falcon comes into position. The falcon, ignoring the grouse up to this point, is directly over the falconer's head, which is now just upwind of the lek. The falconer creeps forward, gently nudging the first few chickens into the air. If all has gone perfectly so far, and the falcon understands the game, they will stoop in a way that corrals the grouse downwind. If the grouse are flying across level ground or uphill, all the better. The falconer falls on their face and waits for the falcon to  return. She does, and another flush is possible. The falconer moves forwards and notices a lump between the rows of wheat. The falconer takes a knee and waits until the perfect moment and runs forward. The grouse flushes crosswind, attempting to beat the falcon. But she has seen this before and instead of stooping where the chicken is, stoops where it is trying to go, forcing it to turn downwind. The falcon levels out just behind the grouse and is  going significantly faster. What little wind there is just adds  to her speed as she comes up and into the grouse, grasping it by a leg. It turns to fight her in  the air but to no avail. She coasts to  the ground and quickly dispatches her quarry in a flurry of wings and feathers.