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Article: North American birds on the decline; Nearly a third of native bird species - even common ones - are seeing striking losses, says a survey.(FEATURES)(PLANET)
- Article from:
- The Christian Science Monitor
- Article date:
- December 2, 2004
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2004 The Christian Science Publishing Society. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Byline: Mark Clayton Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor
Nearly two centuries ago, vast herds of buffalo were almost wiped off the face of America's great plains by settlers. Today it's the prairie chicken that's getting plucked.
Once plentiful like the buffalo, the prairie chicken was dubbed the "fool's hen" because it was so easy to shoot. Even so, the delectable but hardy species survived. As recently as the 1980s, healthy numbers could be found "booming" their songs across the plains.
But a new survey shows that the greater prairie chicken species is in trouble. Since 1966, its population has fallen 78 percent. Fewer than 700,000 ...