I'm not the person you responded to, but I'm another crazy chicken person. I have three ladies and one boy chicken. They have a half acre to run around on typically, but right now I have them in the plot where we grow vegetables so they can break up and fertilize the ground.

Having a rooster for free range chickens is, in my opinion, 100% necessary. My roo does a good job of herding the ladies into the coop when he sees a hawk or anything else he thinks is dangerous. He also makes sure all three hens get food, instead of one of them eating everything. When the sun goes down, he rounds up the girls and they head into the coop to sleep. Here is a pic of my roo, he's quite the gentleman.