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Tag Archives: lek

Booming

PrairieChickenBoomingc

The story of this weekend adventure actually started a year ago.  Late spring 2022 my wife and my cousin’s wife decided that they had never been to see the prairie grouse dance.  Each spring prairie chickens and sharptail grouse have a mating display where the males “dance” to attract females.  It is a spectacle.  I had seen prairie grouse performing their spring mating rituals in many of my travels and adventures in Nebraska, but I told the girls to make …

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View greater prairie-chickens from Burchard WMA blinds

Wildlife enthusiasts can observe the courtship ritual of the greater prairie-chicken in southeastern Nebraska. Approximately 20 birds have been using a lek at Burchard Wildlife Management Area in Pawnee County. A lek is a specific area where the birds gather to display their mating rituals year after year. The public is invited to view the spectacular mating rituals of the male prairie-chickens. Viewers will be able to interact in the bird’s environment and see the importance for conservation of habitat …

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Dance Party

Prairie grouse dancing begins in mid-March and will last into May at a prairie near you. Read on for viewing locations. There are some things you just have to see to believe, and others you have to hear. Few provide a treat to both of those senses like watching prairie grouse perform their courtship dances in the spring. Sitting in a blind before first light, you will hear the birds fly into the lek before you can see them. When …

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My Time on the Lek

lek

The thrill of the dance. When the Pine Ridge Rangers erected a lek viewing blind on the Oglala National Grasslands, I jumped at the chance to experience the dance of the sharp-tailed grouse. For years I had researched private and public blinds. Distance and weather concerns kept me home, but this blind was nearby. I packed blankets, camera, water and snacks and made my way to the blind. Flashlight in hand, I stowed my gear and settled in. Wrapped in …

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