Attwater's Prairie Chicken Recovery Program

Attwater’s prairie chicken (Tympanuchus cupido attwateri) is a critically endangered subspecies of prairie grouse that was once very common on the coastal prairies of eastern Texas, including what is today the Houston metropolitan area. This bird is perhaps best known for its “booming” display, a characteristic male behavior that attracts hens during the breeding season, which takes place from late winter through early spring. Unfortunately, the combination of vanishing habitat, predation, and introduced species has taken its toll on the remaining wild population, which now numbers less than 100 birds at three protected sites – the Attwater Prairie Chicken National Wildlife Refuge, the Texas City Prairie Preserve, and private land near Goliad Texas.

Through a partnership with NASA’s Johnson Space Center, the Houston Zoo has an off-grounds breeding facility for the Attwater’s Prairie Chickens that provides a spacious, quiet environment filled with tall prairie grasses which are optimal for breeding. The 2008 breeding season saw the largest number of birds released into the wild ever in one season; an amazing 370 birds.  The Houston Zoo had continued breeding success in 2009 by hatching and raising 80 chicks, to be released or placed in the breeding program, for the second year in a row. It is believed that success will be achieved by a continued increase of the number of captive-bred birds being released, working to help the release birds successfully raise chicks in the wild, and expanding the number of release sites in the reintroduction program. 

As part of the conservation efforts, the Houston Zoo also conducts ongoing educational programs focused on the ecology of the Gulf Coast Prairie and Marshes Ecoregion, and serves as a venue for generating greater public awareness regarding species and habitat conservation in the state of Texas.