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Article: Prairie chickens could find new life
- Article from:
- Courier News (Elgin, IL)
- Article date:
- July 17, 2006
- Author:
CopyrightCopyright, 2006, Courier News. All rights reserved. REPRODUCTION PROHIBITED. (Hide copyright information)
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PYATTS, Ill. - Forget the Man of La Mancha stuff. Jeff Walk's dream is entirely possible.
Walk, a research scientist with the Illinois Natural History Survey, says it's possible for Pyramid State Park to have a viable self-sustaining prairie chicken population within 10 years.
That's heady stuff. Since Illinois' total prairie chicken population hovers around 200, Walk admits his projection represents a best-case scenario. Illinois' last remaining prairie chicken population lives at Prairie Ridge, a state-run area straddling the Jasper-Marion county line.
In the meantime, there is work to be done to make the dream become reality.
The prairie chicken, a member of the grouse family, was once ...