Attwater's prairie chicken

noun

Att·​wa·​ter's prairie chicken ˈat-ˌwȯ-tərz- 

-ˌwä-

variants or less commonly Attwater's greater prairie chicken

: an endangered grouse (Tympanuchus cupido attwateri) found in the coastal prairie region of Texas that is a subspecies of the greater prairie chicken (Tympanuchus cupido) but is distinguished by its smaller size and slightly darker coloration

The Attwater's prairie chicken once was found over 6 million acres of coastal prairie that stretched from South Texas to western Louisiana. Today, the prairie chicken's population has shrunk from about 1 million birds to only 58 wild birds.

—Bob Hood, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 24 Apr. 1997

Word History

Etymology

after Henry Philemon Attwater †1931 British-born American naturalist

Note: The taxonomic name Tympanuchus americanus attwateri (currently T. cupido attwateri) was given to the bird by U.S. Army officer and ornithologist Charles Bendire (1836-97) in Forest and Stream, vol. 40, no. 20 (May 18,1893), p. 425.

First Known Use

1907, in the meaning defined above

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