Prairie Dog Pals

Dedicated to the Preservation of Prairie Dogs and their Habitat

Happy Thanksgiving

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From all of us here at Prairie Dog Pals to all of you out there, we wish you a happy and safe Thanksgiving!

Evaluation of stress response in black-tailed prairie dogs (Cynomys ludovicianus) in arid regions from colonies in Chihuahua Mexico

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Gen Comp Endocrinol. 2022 Oct 28;330:114150. doi: 10.1016/j.ygcen.2022.114150. Online ahead of print.

Abstract

Among all the regulatory homeostatic networks in vertebrates, the activation of the hypothalamic-pituitaryadrenal axis during the stress response, has gained considerable attention, and the measurement of fecal glucocorticoids (FGC) has become an invaluable tool to assess adrenocortical activity related to stressful events in wild and captive animals. However, the use of FGC requires the validation of measurement techniques and the proper selection of the specific hormone according to the study species. The main objective of this study was to identify the dominant glucocorticoid (GC) hormone in the stress response of black-tailed prairie dogs (Cynomys ludovicianus) in an arid grassland of Chihuahua, Mexico. A capture stress challenge in the field was developed to determine if the levels of glucocorticoids (cortisol and corticosterone) both in serum and fecal samples could be attributed to stress in Cynomys ludovicianus. The samples were analysed with the technique of liquid phase radioimmunoassay , and this study showed that both cortisol and corticosterone are present at measurable levels in serum and fecal samples of black-tailed prairie dogs. We found that both GCs were present in similar concentrations in serum, however, corticosterone concentration in fecal samples was higher than cortisol. Likewise, biochemical validations performed in this study to test the assay reached acceptable levels of reliability. Therefore, we confirm that fecal analysis can be implemented as a method to measure stress responses in wild prairie dogs.

FWP to conduct swift fox survey this winter along Hi-Line

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Swift fox were once abundant on the Great Plains, but in the early 1900s numbers began to decline in response to government poisoning campaigns aimed at wolves, prairie dogs and ground squirrels. Swift foxes lost a prey source in prairie dogs and ground squirrels, and when wolves declined, they couldn’t outcompete coyotes and red foxes for food.

 

Wrestling moves

Read More:  Fox

Wildlife numbers on the decline in Southwest Colorado, plummeting worldwide

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Wildlife populations worldwide have plunged an average of 69% since 1970. That was the staggering conclusion of the Living Planet Report 2022 released by the World Wildlife Fund earlier this month. The report is based on an analysis of 32,000 monitored populations of vertebrates (mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles and fish) that included 5,230 species from 1970 to 2018.

Read More at:  Decline

Boom and bust cycles of black-tailed prairie dog populations in the Thunder Basin grassland ecosystem

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Ana D Davidson, David J Augustine, Hannah Jacobsen, Dave Pellatz, Lauren M Porensky, Gwyn McKee, Courtney Duchardt
Journal of Mammalogy, Volume 103, Issue 5, October 2022, Pages 1112–1126, https://doi.org/10.1093/jmammal/gyac035
Published:
04 May 2022

Abstract

Black-tailed prairie dogs (Cynomys ludovicianus) exhibit boom and bust cycles in landscapes where they are affected by outbreaks of plague caused by the introduced bacterium Yersinia pestis. We examined spatiotemporal dynamics of black-tailed prairie dog colonies in the Thunder Basin National Grassland, Wyoming over a period of 21 years. The colony complex experienced three plague epizootics during that time, and consequently three boom and bust cycles. The entire prairie dog colony complex collapsed over a 1-year period during the first and third epizootics, and over a 3-year period during the second epizootic. The boom and bust cycles were characterized by relatively rapid contractions in total area occupied by prairie dogs during a plague outbreak (e.g., >99% decline from 10,604 ha to 47 ha over 1 year [2017–2018]) followed by much slower recovery times (e.g., an increase from 410 ha to 10,604 ha over 11 years [2006–2017]). Prairie dogs occupied a total of 10,604 ha during at least one survey within the study period, but much of the area was not continuously occupied over time. We found that each of the three plague outbreaks occurred in years with highly connected prairie dog colonies and slightly above-average temperatures and summer precipitation, which were preceded by a dry year. Although plague outbreaks were associated with climatic conditions, we were unable to detect a role of climate in driving colony expansion. Our results illustrate the cyclic and extreme nature of fluctuations in black-tailed prairie dog colony size and distribution in a landscape where plague occurs and illuminate some of the drivers of these cycles. Further, our work shows how introduced diseases can dramatically influence populations of a keystone species, with important consequences for the broader ecological system.

https://academic.oup.com/jmammal/article/103/5/1112/6580036?login=false

Last Release of 2022

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The tanks are all empty and the cages have been cleaned; the hay has been swept out of the staging facility; the volunteers, bless them, have returned to a normal schedule; the Suburban and tanker have been put up for what we hope will be a LONG winter’s rest; and most, if not all, of the prairie dogs are now hibernating.
The now silent staging facility still holds echoes of prairie dogs in transit. Happy, hectic, hopeful, hateful, fearful echoes of our transient guests.
Today, Ray W, Frances G, and C Rex ventured out to the refuge with the last 34 prairie dogs of the summer season. We had prairie dogs from Belen, Los Lunas, Tramway and Central, and Tramway and Lomas.
You can see it was an absolutely gorgeous day, a bit cool, but a perfect day to release the remaining PDs.
The first  thing we did was  group the kennels according to  area, you can see the Los Lunas kennels here.
Here Ray is releasing a Los Lunas PD.
Here, Frances is releasing the prairie dogs she caught from Lomas.
During the course of the morning we investigated the area and found that the PDs had spread out into adjacent areas, exactly as planned. We also provided additional food at  all the feeding  stations and winterized  the drinkers.  The supplemental feeding seems to have helped them in the process of establishing their own digs.
A great day!

540 Paisano Update

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PDP has advised the developer that they were successful in removing all prairie dogs from the site. Multiple trips to check were made over the past few days and we are confident that there are no prairie dogs there. However, we will check back in the spring if construction has not commenced.   Many thanks to all  those involved for the work associated with this removal!

Assembling a safe and effective toolbox for integrated flea control and plague mitigation: Fipronil experiments with prairie dogs

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Free PMC article

Abstract

Background: Plague, a widely distributed zoonotic disease of mammalian hosts and flea vectors, poses a significant risk to ecosystems throughout much of Earth. Conservation biologists use insecticides for flea control and plague mitigation. Here, we evaluate the use of an insecticide grain bait, laced with 0.005% fipronil (FIP) by weight, with black-tailed prairie dogs (BTPDs, Cynomys ludovicianus). We consider safety measures, flea control, BTPD body condition, BTPD survival, efficacy of plague mitigation, and the speed of FIP grain application vs. infusing BTPD burrows with insecticide dusts. We also explore conservation implications for endangered black-footed ferrets (Mustela nigripes), which are specialized predators of Cynomys.

Principal findings: During 5- and 10-day laboratory trials in Colorado, USA, 2016-2017, FIP grain had no detectable acute toxic effect on 20 BTPDs that readily consumed the grain. During field experiments in South Dakota, USA, 2016-2020, FIP grain suppressed fleas on BTPDs for at least 12 months and up to 24 months in many cases; short-term flea control on a few sites was poor for unknown reasons. In an area of South Dakota where plague circulation appeared low or absent, FIP grain had no detectable effect, positive or negative, on BTPD survival. Experimental results suggest FIP grain may have improved BTPD body condition (mass:foot) and reproduction (juveniles:adults). During a 2019 plague epizootic in Colorado, BTPDs on 238 ha habitat were protected by FIP grain, whereas BTPDs were nearly eliminated on non-treated habitat. Applications of FIP grain were 2-4 times faster than dusting BTPD burrows.

Significance: Deltamethrin dust is the most commonly used insecticide for plague mitigation on Cynomys colonies. Fleas on BTPD colonies exhibit the ability to evolve resistance to deltamethrin after repeated annual treatments. Thus, more tools are needed. Accumulating data show orally-delivered FIP is safe and usually effective for flea control with BTPDs, though potential acute toxic effects cannot be ruled out. With continued study and refinement, FIP might be used in rotation with, or even replace deltamethrin, and serve an important role in Cynomys and black-footed ferret conservation. More broadly, our stepwise approach to research on FIP may function as a template or guide for evaluations of insecticides in the context of wildlife conservation.

Conflict of interest statement

The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Anesthetic effects of alfaxalone-ketamine-midazolam and alfaxalone-ketamine-dexmedetomidine administered intramuscularly in black-tailed prairie dogs (Cynomys ludovicianus)

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Am J Vet Res. 2022 Jul 11;83(9):ajvr.21.11.0193. doi: 10.2460/ajvr.21.11.0193.

Free article

Abstract

Objective: To evaluate and compare the anesthetic effects of alfaxalone-ketamine-midazolam (AKM) and alfaxalone-ketamine-dexmedetomidine (AKD) in black-tailed prairie dogs (Cynomys ludovicianus).

Animals: 9 male black-tailed prairie dogs.

Procedures: Prairie dogs were anesthetized with AKM (6 mg/kg alfaxalone, 30 mg/kg ketamine, and 1.5 mg/kg midazolam) and AKD (6 mg/kg alfaxalone, 30 mg/kg ketamine, and 0.15 mg/kg dexmedetomidine) in a prospective, complete cross-over study. Atipamezole (1.5 mg/kg) after AKD or flumazenil (0.1mg/kg) after AKM was administered 45 minutes after induction of anesthesia. Onset of general anesthesia, physiologic parameters, depth of anesthesia, and time to recovery after reversal administration were evaluated for each treatment.

Results: Both AKM and AKD produced a deep plane of anesthesia in black-tailed prairie dogs that varied in duration. The median induction times for AKM and AKD were 82 and 60 seconds, respectively. The median recovery times for AKM and AKD were 27 and 21 minutes, respectively. There were no significant differences between protocols for induction (P = .37) and recovery (P = .51) times. All measured reflexes were absent in all animals at 5 minutes postinduction, with hindlimb reflexes returning prior to forelimb reflexes. Heart rate was lower but respiratory rate was higher in the AKD treatment. Body temperature decreased significantly for both protocols (P < .001) and was significantly lower with AKM than AKD (P < .001).

Clinical relevance: Both AKM and AKD produced a deep plane of anesthesia in black-tailed prairie dogs. For both protocols, heat support and oxygen support are indicated.

Monkey Pox Talking Points

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Thanks to Kaitie Schneider, Program Coordinator, Rockies and Plains Program, Defenders of Wildlife who put together the following talking points regarding the Monkey Pox outbreak:

According to the CDC, in the summer of 2003, health officials and scientists investigated several reports of monkeypox among individuals who became ill after having contact with sick captive prairie dogs. Investigators determined that a shipment of animals from Ghana were imported to Texas in April 2003 and introduced monkeypox virus to captive prairie dogs in the United States. In total, 47 persons became ill with monkeypox during this time. The disease is caused by the monkeypox virus, which belongs to the orthopoxvirus group of viruses. The prairie dogs in the pet trade acquired the monkeypox virus following contact with these infected rodents that were imported as exotic pets. These prairie dogs were sold as pets before they developed signs of infection. This was the first time that human monkeypox cases were reported outside of Africa.

Read more at:  Monkey Pox

 

Reevaluation of the Role of Blocked Oropsylla hirsuta Prairie Dog Fleas (Siphonaptera: Ceratophyllidae) in Yersinia pestis (Enterobacterales: Enterobacteriaceae) Transmission.

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Miarinjara A(1)(2), Eads DA(3), Bland DM(1), Matchett MR(4), Biggins DE(3), Hinnebusch BJ(1). Author information: (1)Laboratory of Bacteriology, Rocky Mountain Laboratories, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, NIH, Hamilton, MT, USA. (2)Department of Environmental Sciences, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA. (3)U.S. Geological Survey, Fort Collins Science Center, Fort Collins, CO, USA. (4)U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Lewistown, MT, USA. Prairie dogs in the western United States experience periodic epizootics of plague, caused by the flea-borne bacterial pathogen Yersinia pestis. An early study indicated that Oropsylla hirsuta (Baker), often the most abundant prairie dog flea vector of plague, seldom transmits Y. pestis by the classic blocked flea mechanism. More recently, an alternative early-phase mode of transmission has been proposed as the driving force behind prairie dog epizootics. In this study, using the same flea infection protocol used previously to evaluate early-phase transmission, we assessed the vector competence of O. hirsuta for both modes of transmission. Proventricular blockage was evident during the first two weeks after infection and transmission during this time was at least as efficient as early-phase transmission 2 d after infection. Thus, both modes of transmission likely contribute to plague epizootics in prairie dogs. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Entomological Society of America 2022. DOI: 10.1093/jme/tjac021 PMID: 35380675

A novel mechanism of streptomycin resistance in Yersinia pestis: Mutation in the rpsL gene

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Abstract

Streptomycin is considered to be one of the effective antibiotics for the treatment of plague. In order to investigate the streptomycin resistance of Y. pestis in China, we evaluated strep- tomycin susceptibility of 536 Y. pestis strains in China in vitro using the minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) and screened streptomycin resistance-associated genes (strA and strB) by PCR method. A clinical Y. pestis isolate (S19960127) exhibited high-level resis- tance to streptomycin (the MIC was 4,096 mg/L). The strain (biovar antiqua) was isolated from a pneumonic plague outbreak in 1996 in Tibet Autonomous Region, China, belonging to the Marmota himalayana Qinghai–Tibet Plateau plague focus. In contrast to previously reported streptomycin resistance mediated by conjugative plasmids, the genome sequenc- ing and allelic replacement experiments demonstrated that an rpsL gene (ribosomal protein S12) mutation with substitution of amino-acid 43 (K43R) was responsible for the high-level resistance to streptomycin in strain S19960127, which is consistent with the mutation reported in some streptomycin-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis strains. Streptomycin is used as the first-line treatment against plague in many countries. The emergence of strep- tomycin resistance in Y. pestis represents a critical public health problem. So streptomycin susceptibility monitoring of Y. pestis isolates should not only include plasmid-mediated resistance but also include the ribosomal protein S12 gene (rpsL) mutation, especially when treatment failure is suspected due to antibiotic resistance.

Read More:  Novel

Pentaplex real-time PCR for differential detection of Yersinia pestis and Y. pseudotuberculosis and application for testing fleas collected during plague epizootics

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Microbiologyopen. 2020 Oct;9(10):e1105. doi: 10.1002/mbo3.1105. Epub 2020 Aug 12.

Free PMC article

Abstract

Upon acquiring two unique plasmids (pMT1 and pPCP1) and genome rearrangement during the evolution from Yersinia pseudotuberculosis, the plague causative agent Y. pestis is closely related to Y. pseudotuberculosis genetically but became highly virulent. We developed a pentaplex real-time PCR assay that not only detects both Yersinia species but also differentiates Y. pestis strains regarding their plasmid profiles. The five targets used were Y. pestis-specific ypo2088, caf1, and pst located on the chromosome, plasmids pMT1 and pPCP1, respectively; Y. pseudotuberculosis-specific chromosomal gene opgG; and 18S ribosomal RNA gene as an internal control for flea DNA. All targets showed 100% specificity and high sensitivity with limits of detection ranging from 1 fg to 100 fg, with Y. pestis-specific pst as the most sensitive target. Using the assay, Y. pestis strains were differentiated 100% by their known plasmid profiles. Testing Y. pestis and Y. pseudotuberculosis-spiked flea DNA showed there is no interference from flea DNA on the amplification of targeted genes. Finally, we applied the assay for testing 102 fleas collected from prairie dog burrows where prairie dog die-off was reported months before flea collection. All flea DNA was amplified by 18S rRNA; no Y. pseudotuberculosis was detected; one flea was positive for all Y. pestis-specific targets, confirming local Y. pestis transmission. Our results indicated the assay is sensitive and specific for the detection and differentiation of Y. pestis and Y. pseudotuberculosis. The assay can be used in field investigations for the rapid identification of the plague causative agent.

Characterization of faecal and caecal microbiota of free-ranging black-tailed prairie dogs ( Cynomys ludovicianus) using high-throughput sequencing of the V4 region of the 16S rRNA gene

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Conserv Physiol. 2021 Jun 15;9(1):coab042. doi: 10.1093/conphys/coab042. eCollection 2021.

Free PMC article

Abstract

Black-tailed prairie dogs (Cynomys ludovicianus) are keystone species within their grassland ecosystems; their population stability affects a multitude of other species. The goals of this study were to explore, describe and compare the bacterial communities in caecal and hard faecal samples from free-ranging black-tailed prairie dogs (n = 36) from KS, USA, using high-throughput sequencing of the V4 region of the 16S rRNA gene and to compare sex and geographic locations. A total of 22 paired faecal and caecal samples were collected post-mortem from free-ranging black-tailed prairie dogs from 5 different geographical locations. The results revealed that the microbiota of both faecal and caecal samples were dominated by the phylum Firmicutes (genera belonging to the Clostridiales order). There was significantly greater richness in faecal compared with caecal samples. There were significant differences between the 5 different geographic regions (P < 0.001), specifically in the relative abundances of genera. There were differences in rare members of the microbiome between faecal samples from male and female prairie dogs but with no significant impact on overall community structure. This study provides novel data and expands our knowledge about the gastrointestinal microbiome composition of free-ranging black-tailed prairie dogs, which has potential to inform conservation efforts and improve their captive management.

Two fatal cases of plague after consumption of raw marmot organs

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Emerg Microbes Infect. 2020; 9(1): 1878–1880.
Published online 2020 Aug 21. doi: 10.1080/22221751.2020.1807412
PMCID: PMC7473306
PMID: 32762515
Jan Kehrmann,a Walter Popp,b,c Battumur Delgermaa,d Damdin Otgonbayar,d Tsagaan Gantumur,e Jan Buer,a and Nyamdorj Tsogbadrakhd

ABSTRACT

Marmots are an important reservoir of Yersinia pestis and a source of human plague in Mongolia. We present two fatal cases of plague after consumption of raw marmot organs and discuss the distribution of natural foci of Y. pestis in Mongolia.

Letter

Plague, caused by Yersinia pestis, is one of the most dreaded diseases in the world and has killed millions of people over the centuries [1]. Y. pestis has acquired virulence factors that make it a unique member of the family of Yersiniaceae, transmitted as a predominantly vector-borne pathogen. Plague is an endemic disease in many parts of the world. Wild rodents are an important reservoir of Y. pestis and its maintenance relies on flea vectors and climate [2]. Climate conditions affect all three components of the plague cycle: bacteria, vectors and animal hosts. Marmots are the main reservoir of Y. pestis in Mongolia and are an important source of human infection [3,4]. Y. pestis is commonly transmitted by fleabites. However, plague after the consumption of raw meat has rarely been reported [5-7]. Here, we present two fatal cases of plague caused by eating raw marmot organs, and we discuss the epidemiology of Y. pestis infection of small rodents in Mongolia.

A 38-year old Mongolian resident of Kazakh ethnicity from Bayan Ulgii aimag (province) in western Mongolia worked as a border guard. He called the emergency medical service from his home, reporting fever, abdominal pain, and bloody vomitus. Soon after his call, he died (28 April 2019). He had hunted and prepared marmots on 22 and 25 April and had been vaccinated with an EV76 Y. pestis vaccine one year previously. He and his 37-year old wife had consumed meat and raw marmot organs (kidney, stomach and gallbladder) on 22, 23, and 25 April. His wife visited a physician daily from 26 to 28 April because of fever, diarrhoea, abdominal pain, vomiting, and headache. She reported celebrating with friends between 22 and 25 April but concealed her contact with and consumption of raw marmot meat. Retrospective interviews with neighbours and older children revealed that the man and his wife were the only persons in the group of friends who had consumed raw marmot meat. The wife refused in-hospital diagnostic tests and was treated as outpatient with erythromycin and anti-inflammatory drugs. After the husband died at home, a tentative diagnosis of plague was made for the wife, and she was treated in the hospital with intravenous gentamicin and ceftriaxone. However, she died on 1 May. The couple left behind four children aged between nine months and twelve years.

Autopsy of the husband on 29 April found no fleabites or enlarged lymph nodes. His inner organs (stomach, oesophagus, liver, kidneys, and lungs) were enlarged and blood-filled and showed signs of inflammation. Y. pestis was cultured on Hottinger blood agar and detected by PCR with Pla1 (5’GAATGAAAATCTCTGAGG3’) and Pla2 (5’TCCAGCGTTAATTACGG3’) and pFRA1 (5’TCAGTTCCGTTATCGCC3’) and pFRA2 (5’GTTAGATACGGTTACGGT3’) primers from blood, liver, spleen, lung, kidney, stomach, brain and bone marrow. The identification was confirmed by phage lysis according to the Mongolian national guidelines. The wife presented with pharyngeal inflammation and swollen cervical lymph nodes. Y. pestis was detected by PCR and by culture of samples from an enlarged cervical lymph node. Y. pestis was also detected in swab specimens from the inflamed throat, blood, and gut.

Although both cases involved zoonotic and not interhuman infections, the detection of Y. pestis in the lungs during autopsy prompted the authorities to follow infection prevalence measures. Because it was possible that both patients had contracted secondary pneumonic plague, the authorities followed the Mongolian national plague guidelines for pneumonic plague. All 124 persons who had come into close contact with the couple between 22 and 28 April were treated prophylactically with doxycycline or ciprofloxacin. Ulgii city (34,000 residents) was quarantined from 1 to 6 May. F1-antigen tests were performed on throat swab specimens of 198 close contact persons, family members, friends, colleagues, and medical staff at least six days after the last contact, and all results were negative.

Annual surveys of the prevalence of Y. pestis in Mongolia from 2012 to 2019 found that 137 soums (districts) of 13 aimags have natural plague foci, with a high infection prevalence for Bayan Ulgii in the western part of the country (Figure 1(A)). The infection prevalence of marmots and their associated fleas in Bayan Ulgii aimag was 20.2% in 2018 and 16.8% in 2019. It was determined from testing 287 small rodents and 261 fleas in 2018 and 397 small rodents and 312 fleas in 2019 in this area by serologic tests and PCR: in case of positivity, bacteriologic culture was performed additionally.

A. Geographic distribution of natural foci of plague in Mongolia as assessed from 2012 to 2019. Categorization of prevalence took into account the extent and continuity of Y. pestis infection of small rodents in various regions of Mongolia over the past eight years. For each aimag (province), a minimum of 80–100 small rodents and fleas associated with the rodents in an area 100–120 kilometres square were examined annually with serologic tests (F1-antigen and plague specific antibody test) and polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Positive samples were subjected to bacteriologic culture. B. Picture of Marmota sibirica. C and D. Preparation of traditional marmot boodog: Burning furs with flame (C) and cooked marmot boodog (D).

Of the 73 reported cases of plague in Mongolia since 1998, 59% have been associated with close contact with infected marmots and 7% with eating raw marmot organs (data provided by National Centre for Zoonotic Diseases, Ministry of Health, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia).

The rapid clinical course of the disease and the absence of signs of lymphadenitis with the detection of Y. pestis in the blood indicate that the husband died of septicaemic plague caused by the consumption of raw marmot infected with Y. pestis. Y. pestis infection occurred even though the man had received an EV76 vaccine one year previously. There is no evidence showing that the available Y. pestis vaccines provide humans with long-lasting immunity and protection from plague [8,9].

The combination of pharyngeal inflammation, swollen cervical lymph nodes, detection of the pathogen in cervical lymph node tissue and pharyngeal swab specimens, and the absence of fleabites indicate that the wife was also infected by consuming raw marmot meat. Pharyngeal inflammation and swollen cervical lymph nodes have previously been reported among patients who have consumed raw marmot meat [5,6,10]. The wifés concealment of consumption of raw marmot meat contributed to a delayed diagnosis. Because hunting marmots has been prohibited by the Mongolian government since 2014, Mongolians fear punishment when they admit this activity. Marmot, prepared as boodog (filled with hot stones), is a national dish in Mongolia (Figure 1(B–D)), and, because Mongolians assume that boodog has healthful benefits, marmot hunting is a covert activity. When marmots are prepared for boodog, especially before the fur is burnt away with a blowtorch, fleas infected with Y. pestis may change their host, thereby typically causing bubonic plague. Marmota sibirica, a species that also lives in Western Mongolia, exhibits a relatively high resistance to plague (50%–80% survive infection), a feature that has been suggested to play an important role in the persistence of the pathogen [3].

The habit of eating infected raw marmot meat is a possible means of infection with plague in Mongolia. Cooking efficiently inactivates Y. pestis [11]: thus, infections in Mongolia are associated with consumption of raw meat, not with the consumption of cooked boodog. The most important mode of Y. pestis infection in Mongolia is close contact with infected marmots. A study from Zambia [12] found that the risk of transfer of Y. pestis from infected fleas on captured animals to humans is higher during hunting and transporting of marmots rather than during preparation of animals for food. That study showed that hunting behaviour, mode of transportation of carcasses, and method of preparation of carcasses may substantially influence the risk of flea transmission.

A diagnosis of plague should be considered in areas with active plague foci, including the Bayan Ulgii aimag in the western part of Mongolia [3,13] where the dead couple resided. Only few reports of plague connected with the consumption of raw meat have been published to date; most cases are associated with the consumption of raw or undercooked camel meat [5–7,10]. The patients reported here had no fleabites and their predominant symptoms were bloody vomitus and sepsis in one case and gastrointestinal symptoms and pharyngeal inflammation in the other. Therefore, we conclude that the infections were caused by the consumption of raw marmot meat.

Marmot meat is considered a delicacy in Mongolia, but its consumption confers a risk of Y. pestis infection. In plague-endemic districts, healthcare professionals obtaining a patient´s medical history should ask about consumption of marmot and plague should be considered as a tentative diagnosis. Communicating the risk of Y. pestis infection after close contact with or consumption of marmot meat, especially raw meat, may increase the awareness of plague among the population.

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Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

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Emerg Microbes Infect. 2020; 9(1): 1878–1880.
Published online 2020 Aug 21. doi: 10.1080/22221751.2020.1807412
PMCID: PMC7473306
PMID: 32762515
Jan Kehrmann,a Walter Popp,b,c Battumur Delgermaa,d Damdin Otgonbayar,d Tsagaan Gantumur,e Jan Buer,a and Nyamdorj Tsogbadrakhd


Prairie dogs’ language decoded by scientists

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Human-animal translation devices may be available within 10 years, researcher says

Prairie dogs give each other detailed descriptions of humans nearby, including the colour of their clothing, their size and whether they have carried a gun. (Hyungwon Kang/Reuters)

Did that prairie dog just call you fat? Quite possibly. On The Current Friday, biologist Con Slobodchikoff described how he learned to understand what prairie dogs are saying to one another and discovered how eloquent they can be.

Slobodchikoff, a professor emeritus at North Arizona University, told Erica Johnson, guest host of The Current, that he started studying prairie dog language 30 years ago after scientists reported that other ground squirrels had different alarm calls to warn each other of flying predators such as hawks and eagles, versus predators on the ground, such as coyotes or badgers.

Read more:  Language

Lateral Approach for Excision of Maxillary Incisor Pseudo-Odontoma in Prairie Dogs (Cynomys ludovicianus)

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Abstract

Aim: To describe our experience with lateral approach for excision of maxillary pseudo-odontomas and to illustrate surgical outcomes and postoperative complications in seven pet prairie dogs. Materials and methods: Excision of 11 maxillary pseudo-odontomas was performed in seven prairie dogs with a lateral approach technique and clinical presentation, duration of surgery, time and type of post-surgical complications, presence or absence of symptom recurrence, time to follow-up, overall survival time and causes of death of each case were recorded. Results: Duration of surgery, postoperative hospitalization and time to autonomous feeding were 54.8 min, 58 h and 1 day, respectively. Recurrence of respiratory symptoms was observed in four cases. Mean follow-up time was 632 days. Six out of seven cases were still alive at the end of the study. Conclusion: The lateral approach to excision showed good and promising results for treatment of maxillary pseudo-odontomas in prairie dogs.
Authors:
Igor Pelizzone
Gaetano D Vitolo
Massimo D’Acierno
Damiano Stefanello

Minutes of the General Meeting

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The general meeting of Prairie Dog Pals was conducted via Zoom on 7 February 2021.  The minutes of the meeting can be accessed via the following link:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2021 Meeting:  2021 Meeting Minutes

The good news is that we completed 2020 with a small surplus.  We have plenty planned for 2021 and judging by the dry winter, our stewards will be very busy.

Fipronil Pellets Reduce Flea Abundance on Black-tailed Prairie Dogs: Potential Tool for Plague Management and Black-footed Ferret Conservation

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Abstract

In western North America, sylvatic plague (a flea-borne disease) poses a significant risk to endangered black-footed ferrets (Mustela nigripes) and their primary prey, prairie dogs (Cynomys spp.). Pulicides (flea-killing chemicals) can be used to suppress fleas and thereby manage plague. In South Dakota, USA, we tested edible “FipBit” pellets, each containing 0.84 mg fipronil, on free-living black-tailed prairie dogs (Cynomys ludivicianus). FipBits were applied along transects at 125 per ha and nearly eliminated fleas for 2 mo. From 9-14 mo post-treatment, we found only 10 fleas on FipBit sites versus 1,266 fleas on nontreated sites. This degree and duration of flea control should suppress plague transmission. FipBits are effective, inexpensive, and easily distributed but require federal approval for operational use.

David A Eads, Travis M Livieri, Phillip Dobesh, Eddie Childers, Lauren E Noble, Michele C Vasquez, Dean E Biggins

Study shows several peridomestic mammal species are potential spreaders of SARS-CoV-2

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Of the nine species that had been evaluated, three of them (i.e., deer mice, striped skunks and bushy-tailed woodrats) shed infectious viral particles following challenge. Conversely, the study showed that house mice, raccoons, fox squirrels, Wyoming ground squirrels, cottontail rabbits and black-tailed prairie dogs are not susceptible to SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Read More at:  https://www.news-medical.net/news/20210126/Study-shows-several-peridomestic-mammal-species-are-potential-spreaders-of-SARS-CoV-2.aspx

Perineuronal net expression in the brain of a hibernating mammal

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Abstract

During hibernation, mammals like the 13-lined ground squirrel cycle between physiological extremes. Most of the hibernation season is spent in bouts of torpor, where body temperature, heart rate, and cerebral blood flow are all very low. However, the ground squirrels periodically enter into interbout arousals (IBAs), where physiological parameters return to non-hibernating levels. During torpor, neurons in many brain regions shrink and become electrically quiescent, but reconnect and regain activity during IBA. Previous work showed evidence of extracellular matrix (ECM) changes occurring in the hypothalamus during hibernation that could be associated with this plasticity. Here, we examined expression of a specialized ECM structure, the perineuronal net (PNN), in the forebrain of ground squirrels in torpor, IBA, and summer (non-hibernating). PNNs are known to restrict plasticity, and could be important for retaining essential connections in the brain during hibernation. We found PNNs in three regions of the hypothalamus: ventrolateral hypothalamus, paraventricular nucleus (PVN), and anterior hypothalamic area. We also found PNNs throughout the cerebral cortex, amygdala, and lateral septum. The total area covered by PNNs within the PVN was significantly higher during IBA compared to non-hibernating and torpor (P < 0.01). Additionally, the amount of PNN coverage area per Nissl-stained neuron in the PVN was significantly higher in hibernation compared to non-hibernating (P < 0.05). No other significant differences were found across seasons. The PVN is involved in food intake and homeostasis, and PNNs found here could be essential for retaining vital life functions during hibernation

Anna Marchand  1 , Christine Schwartz  2

Circadian transcription factor HSF1 regulates differential HSP70 gene transcription during the arousal-torpor cycle in mammalian hibernation

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Abstract

Mammalian hibernation is a seasonal phenomenon. The hibernation season consists of torpor periods with a reduced body temperature (Tb), interrupted by euthermic arousal periods (interbout arousal, IBA). The physiological changes associated with hibernation are assumed to be under genetic control. However, the molecular mechanisms that govern hibernation-associated gene regulation are still unclear. We found that HSP70 transcription is upregulated in the liver of nonhibernating (summer-active) chipmunks compared with hibernating (winter-torpid) ones. In parallel, HSF1, the major transcription factor for HSP70 expression, is abundant in the liver-cell nuclei of nonhibernating chipmunks, and disappears from the nuclei of hibernating ones. Moreover, during IBA, HSF1 reappears in the nuclei and drives HSP70 transcription. In mouse liver, HSF1 is regulated by the daily Tb rhythm, and acts as a circadian transcription factor. Taken together, chipmunks similarly use the Tb rhythm to regulate gene expression via HSF1 during the torpor-arousal cycle in the hibernation season.

Daisuke Tsukamoto  1 , Tomoko Hasegawa  2 , Shin-Ichi Hirose  2 , Yukina Sakurai  2 , Michihiko Ito  2 , Nobuhiko Takamatsu  3
Affiliations

IMVAMUNE ® and ACAM2000 ® Provide Different Protection against Disease When Administered Postexposure in an Intranasal Monkeypox Challenge Prairie Dog Model

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Abstract

The protection provided by smallpox vaccines when used after exposure to Orthopoxviruses is poorly understood. Postexposu re administration of 1st generation smallpox vaccines was effective during eradication. However, historical epidemiological reports and animal studies on postexposure vaccination are difficult to extrapolate to today’s populations, and 2nd and 3rd generation vaccines, developed after eradication, have not been widely tested in postexposure vaccination scenarios. In addition to concerns about preparedness for a potential malevolent reintroduction of variola virus, humans are becoming increasingly exposed to naturally occurring zoonotic orthopoxviruses and, following these exposures, disease severity is worse in individuals who never received smallpox vaccination. This study investigated whether postexposure vaccination of prairie dogs with 2nd and 3rd generation smallpox vaccines was protective against monkeypox disease in four exposure scenarios. We infected animals with monkeypox virus at doses of 104 pfu (2× LD50) or 106 pfu (170× LD50) and vaccinated the animals with IMVAMUNE® or ACAM2000® either 1 or 3 days after challenge. Our results indicated that postexposure vaccination protected the animals to some degree from the 2× LD50, but not the 170× LD5 challenge. In the 2× LD50 challenge, we also observed that administration of vaccine at 1 day was more effective than administration at 3 days postexposure for IMVAMUNE®, but ACAM2000® was similarly effective at either postexposure vaccination time-point. The effects of postexposure vaccination and correlations with survival of total and neutralizing antibody responses, protein targets, take formation, weight loss, rash burden, and viral DNA are also presented.

M Shannon Keckler  1   2 , Johanna S Salzer  1   3 , Nishi Patel  1   4 , Michael B Townsend  1 , Yoshinori J Nakazawa  1 , Jeffrey B Doty  1 , Nadia F Gallardo-Romero  1 , Panayampalli S Satheshkumar  1 , Darin S Carroll  1   5 , Kevin L Karem  1   6 , Inger K Damon  1
Affiliations

An invasive disease, sylvatic plague, increases fragmentation of black-tailed prairie dog (Cynomys ludovicianus) colonies

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Abstract

Context: A disease can be a source of disturbance, causing population declines or extirpations, altering species interactions, and affecting habitat structure. This is particularly relevant for diseases that affect keystone species or ecosystem engineers, leading to potentially cascading effects on ecosystems.

Objective: We investigated the invasion of a non-native disease, plague, to a keystone species, prairie dogs, and documented the resulting extent of fragmentation and habitat loss in western grasslands. Specifically, we assessed how the arrival of plague in the Conata Basin, South Dakota, United States, affected the size, shape, and aggregation of prairie dog colonies, an animal species known to be highly susceptible to plague.

Methods: Colonies in the prairie dog complex were mapped every 1 to 3 years from 1993 to 2015. Plague was first confirmed in 2008 and we compared prairie dog complex and colony characteristics before and after the arrival of plague.

Results: As expected the colony complex and the patches in colonies became smaller and more fragmented after the arrival of plague; the total area of each colony and the mean area per patch within a colony decreased, the number of patches per colony increased, and mean contiguity of each patch decreased, leading to habitat fragmentation.

Conclusion: We demonstrate how an emerging infectious disease can act as a source of disturbance to natural systems and lead to potentially permanent alteration of habitat characteristics. While perhaps not traditionally thought of as a source of ecosystem disturbances, in recent years emerging infectious diseases have shown to be able to have large effects on ecosystems if they affect keystone species.

Krystal M Keuler  1 , Gebbiena M Bron  1 , Randall Griebel  2 , Katherine L D Richgels  1
Affiliations

Evaluation of Yersinia pestis Transmission Pathways for Sylvatic Plague in Prairie Dog Populations in the Western U.S

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Abstract

Sylvatic plague, caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis, is periodically responsible for large die-offs in rodent populations that can spillover and cause human mortalities. In the western US, prairie dog populations experience nearly 100% mortality during plague outbreaks, suggesting that multiple transmission pathways combine to amplify plague dynamics. Several alternate pathways in addition to flea vectors have been proposed, such as transmission via direct contact with bodily fluids or inhalation of infectious droplets, consumption of carcasses, and environmental sources of plague bacteria, such as contaminated soil. However, evidence supporting the ability of these proposed alternate pathways to trigger large-scale epizootics remains elusive. Here we present a short review of potential plague transmission pathways and use an ordinary differential equation model to assess the contribution of each pathway to resulting plague dynamics in black-tailed prairie dogs (Cynomys ludovicianus) and their fleas (Oropsylla hirsuta). Using our model, we found little evidence to suggest that soil contamination was capable of producing plague epizootics in prairie dogs. However, in the absence of flea transmission, direct transmission, i.e., contact with bodily fluids or inhalation of infectious droplets, could produce enzootic dynamics, and transmission via contact with or consumption of carcasses could produce epizootics. This suggests that these pathways warrant further investigation.

Katherine L D Richgels  1   2 , Robin E Russell  1 , Gebbiena M Bron  1   2 , Tonie E Rocke  3
Affiliations

A Novel Retrovirus (Gunnison’s Prairie Dog Retrovirus) Associated With Thymic Lymphoma in Gunnison’s Prairie Dogs in Colorado, USA

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Abstract

As part of research and wildlife disease surveillance efforts, we performed necropsy examinations of 125 free-ranging (n = 114) and captive (n = 11) prairie dogs in Colorado from 2009 to 2017. From these cases, we identified three cases of thymic lymphoma in free-ranging Gunnison’s prairie dogs (Cynomys gunnisoni), and we identified a novel retroviral sequence associated with these tumors. The viral sequence is 7700 nucleotides in length and exhibits a genetic organization that is consistent with the characteristics of a type D betaretrovirus. The proposed name of this virus is Gunnison’s prairie dog retrovirus (GPDRV). We screened all 125 prairie dogs for the presence of GPDRV using PCR with envelope-specific primers and DNA extracted from spleen samples. Samples were from Gunnison’s prairie dogs (n = 59), black-tailed prairie dogs (Cynomys ludovicianus) (n = 40), and white-tailed prairie dogs (Cynomys leucurus) (n = 26). We identified GPDRV in a total of 7/125 (5.6%) samples including all three of the prairie dogs with thymic lymphoma, as well as spleen from an additional four Gunnison’s prairie dogs with no tumors recognized at necropsy. None of the GPDRV-negative Gunnison’s prairie dogs had thymic lymphomas. We also identified a related, apparently endogenous retroviral sequence in all prairie dog samples. These results suggest that GPDRV infection may lead to development of thymic lymphoma in Gunnison’s prairie dogs.

Molly D Butler  1 , Karen Griffin  2 , Connie D Brewster  1 , Marylee L Kapuscinski  1 , Mark D Stenglein  1 , Daniel W Tripp  2 , Sandra L Quackenbush  1 , Karen A Fox  2
Affiliations

A Novel Retrovirus (Gunnison’s Prairie Dog Retrovirus) Associated With Thymic Lymphoma in Gunnison’s Prairie Dogs in Colorado, USA

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Abstract

As part of research and wildlife disease surveillance efforts, we performed necropsy examinations of 125 free-ranging (n = 114) and captive (n = 11) prairie dogs in Colorado from 2009 to 2017. From these cases, we identified three cases of thymic lymphoma in free-ranging Gunnison’s prairie dogs (Cynomys gunnisoni), and we identified a novel retroviral sequence associated with these tumors. The viral sequence is 7700 nucleotides in length and exhibits a genetic organization that is consistent with the characteristics of a type D betaretrovirus. The proposed name of this virus is Gunnison’s prairie dog retrovirus (GPDRV). We screened all 125 prairie dogs for the presence of GPDRV using PCR with envelope-specific primers and DNA extracted from spleen samples. Samples were from Gunnison’s prairie dogs (n = 59), black-tailed prairie dogs (Cynomys ludovicianus) (n = 40), and white-tailed prairie dogs (Cynomys leucurus) (n = 26). We identified GPDRV in a total of 7/125 (5.6%) samples including all three of the prairie dogs with thymic lymphoma, as well as spleen from an additional four Gunnison’s prairie dogs with no tumors recognized at necropsy. None of the GPDRV-negative Gunnison’s prairie dogs had thymic lymphomas. We also identified a related, apparently endogenous retroviral sequence in all prairie dog samples. These results suggest that GPDRV infection may lead to development of thymic lymphoma in Gunnison’s prairie dogs.

Molly D Butler  1 , Karen Griffin  2 , Connie D Brewster  1 , Marylee L Kapuscinski  1 , Mark D Stenglein  1 , Daniel W Tripp  2 , Sandra L Quackenbush  1 , Karen A Fox  2
Affiliations

 

Rabbit Hemorrhagic Disease Virus 2 Confirmed in Wild Rabbits in the United States

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Rabbit hemorrhagic disease virus 2 (RHDV2), a notifiable foreign animal disease, has been confirmed for

the first time in wild rabbits in the United States.

Read more:  Rabbit

If you live in New Mexico….and in the event you find a sick or dead rabbit…

From Wildlife Rescue: “The disease has been found in Southern and Eastern NM and it is only a matter or time when it will be found here in our area. It is highly contagious, but only to other rabbits, domestic rabbits and species within the rabbit family. Baby rabbits don’t seem to be affected at least at this time.”

If we (Wildlife Rescue) receive any phone calls regarding someone reporting dead or sick wild rabbits, we are asking them for info on where these rabbits are located and reporting this to USGS/NMG&F or to our mammal coordinator. We are telling people not to handle or rescue these rabbits themselves or to wear gloves if handling them.

FLEA PARASITISM AND HOST SURVIVAL IN A PLAGUE-RELEVANT SYSTEM: THEORETICAL AND CONSERVATION IMPLICATIONS.

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Author information:
1. US Geological Survey, Fort Collins Science Center, 2150 Centre Avenue, Building C, Fort Collins, CO 80526, USA’.
2. US Geological Survey, National Wildlife Health Center, 6006 Schroeder Road, Madison, WI 53711, USA

Abstract

Plague is a bacterial zoonosis of mammalian hosts and flea vectors. The disease is capable of ravaging rodent populations and transforming ecosystems. Because plague mortality is likely to be predicted by flea parasitism, it is critical to understand vector dynamics. It has been hypothesized that paltry precipitation and reduced vegetative production predispose herbivorous rodents to malnourishment and flea parasitism, and flea parasitism varies directly with plague mortality. We evaluated these hypotheses on five colonies of Utah prairie dogs (UPDs; Cynomys parvidens), on the Awapa Plateau, Utah, USA, in 2013-16. Ten flea species were identified among 3,257 fleas from UPDs. These 10 flea species parasitize prairie dogs, mice, rats, voles, ground squirrels, chipmunks, and marmots, all known hosts of plague. The abundance of fleas on individual UPDs (1,198 observations) varied inversely with UPD body condition; fleas were most abundant on lightweight, malnourished UPDs. Flea abundance on UPDs was highest in dry years that were preceded by wet years. Increased precipitation and soil moisture in the prior year might generate humid microclimates in UPD burrows (that could facilitate flea survival and reproduction) and paltry precipitation in the current year could predispose UPDs to malnourishment and flea parasitism. Annual re-encounter rates for UPDs (1,072 observations) were reduced in wetter years preceded by drier years; reduced precipitation and vegetative production might kill UPDs, and increased flea densities in drier years could provide conditions for plague transmission (and UPD mortality) when moisture returns. Re-encounter rates were reduced for UPDs carrying at least one flea compared to UPDs with no detected fleas. These results support the hypothesis that reduced precipitation in the current year predisposes UPDs to flea parasitism. Our results also suggest a link between flea parasitism and UPD mortality. Given documented connections between flea parasitism and plague transmission, our results point toward an effect of flea parasitism on plague-related deaths for individual UPDs, a phenomenon rarely investigated in nature.

 

PMID: 31880988

Am J Vet Res. 2019 Dec;80(12):1114-1121. doi: 10.2460/ajvr.80.12.1114. Comparison of the effects of a dexmedetomidine-ketamine-midazolam anesthetic protocol versus isoflurane inhalation anesthesia on echocardiography variables and plasma cardiac troponin I concentration in black-tailed prairie dogs (Cynomys ludovicianus).

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Ross E, Thomason JD, Browning GR, Beaufrère H, Eshar D.

Abstract

OBJECTIVE:

To compare the effects of a dexmedetomidine-ketamine-midazolam (DKM) anesthetic protocol versus isoflurane inhalation anesthesia on echocardiographic variables and plasma cardiac troponin 1 (cTnI) concentration in black-tailed prairie dogs (BTPDs; Cynomys ludovicianus)

ANIMALS:

Nine 6-month-old sexually intact male captive BTPDs.

PROCEDURES:

Each BTPD was randomly assigned to be anesthetized by IM administration of dexmedetomidine (0.25 mg/kg), ketamine (40 mg/kg), and midazolam (1.5 mg/kg) or via inhalation of isoflurane and oxygen. Three days later, each BTPD underwent the alternative anesthetic protocol. Echocardiographic data and a blood sample were collected within 5 minutes after initiation and just prior to cessation of each 45-minute-long anesthetic episode.

RESULTS:

Time or anesthetic protocol had no significant effect on echocardiographic variables. For either protocol, plasma cTnI concentration did not differ with time. When administered as the first treatment, neither anesthetic protocol significantly affected plasma cTnI concentration. However, with regard to findings for the second treatments, plasma cTnI concentrations in isoflurane-treated BTPDs (n = 4; data for 1 animal were not analyzed because of procedural problems) were higher than values in DKM-treated BTPDs (4), which was suspected to be a carryover effect from prior DKM treatment.

CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE:

The DKM and isoflurane anesthetic protocols did not have any significant effect on echocardiographic measurements in the BTPDs. Increases in plasma cTnI concentration during the second anesthetic episode were evident when BTPDs underwent the DKM anesthetic protocol as the first of the 2 treatments, suggestive of potential myocardial injury associated with that anesthetic protocol. Clinicians should consider these findings, especially when evaluating BTPDs with known or suspected cardiac disease.

 

PMID: 31763940

Every year, between 1,000 to 2,000 people get the plague

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The plague – yes, that plague – is back in the news. But it never really went away.

Anywhere from 1,000 to 2,000 people get the plague every year, the World Health Organisation reported. But that total is likely too modest an estimate, since it doesn’t account for unreported cases.
Even by US standards, four cases is unusually low. An average of seven Americans get the plague every year, the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention reported.
Plague

The First Time the Plague Broke Out in the US, Officials Tried to Deny It

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At the turn of the 20th century, the world was gripped by a plague pandemic that had spread from China to port cities around the globe. So when a 41-year-old San Franciscan named Wong Chut King died of a particularly violent disease in March 1900, there were worries that the pandemic had finally reached U.S. soil.

After examining samples from King’s autopsy, the head of the city’s Marine Hospital Service confirmed those fears: the plague had come to America. And unfortunately, it never left.

 

Read More:  California

The functional roles of mammals in ecosystems

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The diverse functional roles of over 6,000 species of extant mammals that range in body size across eight orders
of magnitude, from blue whales (Balaenoptera musculus) to tiny Etruscan shrews (Suncus etruscus), contribute
to shaping Earth’s ecosystems. Large mammalian herbivores (e.g., African elephants [Loxodonta africana],
American bison [Bison bison], hippopotamuses [Hippopotamus amphibius]) and carnivores (e.g., wolves [Canis
lupus], pumas [Puma concolor], sea otters [Enhydra lutris]) often have significant effects on primary producers in
terrestrial, aquatic, and marine systems through nutrient cycling, energy flow, and the exertion of bottom-up and
top-down processes. Small mammals, like bats, are important pollinators, dispersers of fruits, and consumers of
arthropods, and others, especially rodents and primates, are important predators and dispersers of seeds. Many of
these mammal-mediated processes occur simultaneously in the same ecosystem, and have significant effects on
community structure of primary producers that in turn alter communities of other vertebrates and invertebrates.
Many mammals also are ecosystem engineers (e.g., elephants, American beavers [Castor canadensis], porcupines
[Erithezon dorsatum], prairie dogs [Cynomys spp.]) that create, significantly modify, or destroy habitat, and by
doing so, they alter ecosystem structure and function and increase habitat heterogeneity and biodiversity. The
extensive influence mammals have on ecosystems results in important services that contribute to human wellbeing,
such as pollination, insect pest control, and bioturbation of soils. The rapid declines in abundance of many
mammal populations and the associated increase in extinction risk raise conservation concerns for mammals.
To maintain mammalian diversity and the critical ecosystem processes they provide, scientists need to mobilize
concern for their status and strive for more effective and comprehensive conservation action. We provide insights
and synthesis on the ecological role of mammals and highlight key research questions and future directions for
their conservation.

Read more:  Mammal

Spring Garage Sale

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The Prairie Dog Pals Spring garage sale will be held on Friday and Saturday, 17-18 May 2019, at 917 Morris St. NE, between the hours of 800 AM and 400 PM. Donate, shop, volunteer, or just drop by to chat! All are welcome!

If you want to donate you can drop off your treasures at 917 Morris St. NE. Please contact Debbie S at 505 205 7966 so that she can coordinate the drop-off. Please provide an inventory (with values) if you want a tax receipt. Also it would be extremely helpful if you could price your items. I mean only you can assess the true value of your treasures, right?

If you want to help with the sale, let Debbie know.

Plague-Positive Mouse Fleas on Mice Before Plague Induced Die-Offs in Black-Tailed and White-Tailed Prairie Dogs.

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Bron GM 1, 2, Malavé CM 1, Boulerice JT 3, Osorio JE 2, Rocke TE 1.

Author information:
1. 1 U.S. Geological Survey National Wildlife Health Center, Madison, Wisconsin.
2. 2 Department of Pathobiological Sciences, University of Wisconsin-Madison, School of Veterinary Medicine, Madison, Wisconsin.
3. 3 Wyoming Game and Fish Department, Laramie, Wyoming.

Abstract

Plague is a lethal zoonotic disease associated with rodents worldwide. In the western United States, plague outbreaks can decimate prairie dog (Cynomys spp.) colonies. However, it is unclear where the causative agent, Yersinia pestis, of this flea-borne disease is maintained between outbreaks, and what triggers plague-induced prairie dog die-offs. Less susceptible rodent hosts, such as mice, could serve to maintain the bacterium, transport infectious fleas across a colony, or introduce the pathogen to other colonies, possibly facilitating an outbreak. Here, we assess the potential role of two short-lived rodent species, North American deer mice (Peromyscus maniculatus) and Northern grasshopper mice (Onychomys leucogaster) in plague dynamics on prairie dog colonies. We live-trapped short-lived rodents and collected their fleas on black-tailed (Cynomys ludovicianus, Montana and South Dakota), white-tailed (Cynomys leucurus, Utah and Wyoming), and Utah prairie dog colonies (Cynomys parvidens, Utah) annually, from 2013 to 2016. Plague outbreaks occurred on colonies of all three species. In all study areas, deer mouse abundance was high the year before plague-induced prairie dog die-offs, but mouse abundance per colony was not predictive of plague die-offs in prairie dogs. We did not detect Y. pestis DNA in mouse fleas during prairie dog die-offs, but in three cases we found it beforehand. On one white-tailed prairie dog colony, we detected Y. pestis positive fleas on one grasshopper mouse and several prairie dogs live-trapped 10 days later, months before visible declines and plague-confirmed mortality of prairie dogs. On one black-tailed prairie dog colony, we detected Y. pestis positive fleas on two deer mice 3 months before evidence of plague was detected in prairie dogs or their fleas and also well before a plague-induced die-off. These observations of plague positive fleas on mice could represent early spillover events of Y. pestis from prairie dogs or an unknown reservoir, or possible movement of infectious fleas by mice.

Prairie Dogs, Persistent Plague, Flocking Fleas, and Pernicious Positive Feedback.

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1. Front Vet Sci. 2019 Mar 28;6:75. doi: 10.3389/fvets.2019.00075. eCollection 2019.
Biggins DE 1, Eads DA 1, 2.

Author information:
1. United States Geological Survey, Fort Collins Science Center, Fort Collins, CO, United States.
2. Department of Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, United States.

Abstract

Plague (caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis) is a deadly flea-borne disease that remains a threat to public health nearly worldwide and is particularly disruptive ecologically where it has been introduced. We review hypotheses regarding maintenance and transmission of Y. pestis, emphasizing recent data from North America supporting maintenance by persistent transmission that results in sustained non-epizootic (but variable) rates of mortality in hosts. This maintenance mechanism may facilitate periodic epizootic eruptions “in place” because the need for repeated reinvasion from disjunct sources is eliminated. Resulting explosive outbreaks that spread rapidly in time and space are likely enhanced by synergistic positive feedback (PFB) cycles involving flea vectors, hosts, and the plague bacterium itself. Although PFB has been implied in plague literature for at least 50 years, we propose this mechanism, particularly with regard to flea responses, as central to epizootic plague rather than a phenomenon worthy of just peripheral mention. We also present new data on increases in flea:host ratios resulting from recreational shooting and poisoning as possible triggers for the transition from enzootic maintenance to PFB cycles and epizootic explosions. Although plague outbreaks have received much historic attention, PFB cycles that result in decimation of host populations lead to speculation that epizootic eruptions might not be part of the adaptive evolutionary strategy of Y. pestis but might instead be a tolerated intermittent cost of its modus operandi. We also speculate that there may be mammal communities where epizootics, as we define them, are rare or absent. Absence of plague epizootics might translate into reduced public health risk but does not necessarily equate to inconsequential ecologic impact.

PMCID: PMC6447679 Free PMC Article

Arizona Game and Fish Commission considers a rule prohibiting predator-killing contests

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Your help is requested for this time sensitive and urgent call for comments on banning Coyote Killing Contests in Arizona. As you know New Mexico recently achieved this state wide band under intense pressure from outside sources. Arizona will face even more pressure against establishing this ban. Please research scientific and humane reasoning for banning these contests by visiting Project Coyote. If you think that banning these horrific contests is a slam dunk, yoiu are mistaken. The forces that have promoted these contests are very powerful. Your voice is essential.

Members of the public who wish to submit comments on the proposed rule can send their feedback via e-mail at rulemaking@azgfd.gov. They can also mail their comments to the Arizona Game and Fish Department, Attn: Rules Section at 5000 W. Carefree Highway, Phoenix AZ 85086.

Republic file photo An adult male coyote rests in the sun about 50 yards from his den near the Indian Bend bike path. An adult male rests in the late afternoon sun about 50 yards from his coyote den. A family of six coyotes, one male, one female and four pups had created a den just off the Indian Bend bike path north of Jackrabbit in this 2010 photo.

Read more:  Arizona

Tularemia ( Francisella tularensis) in a Black-Tailed Prairie Dog ( Cynomys ludovicianus) Colony.

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Cherry CC 1, 2, Kwit NA 1, 3, Ohms RE 4, Hammesfahr AM 4, Pappert R 3, Petersen JM 3, Nelson CA 3, Buttke DE 2.

Author information:
1. 1 Epidemic Intelligence Service, Division of Scientific Education and Professional Development, Center for Surveillance, Epidemiology, and Laboratory Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1600 Clifton Road NE, Atlanta, Georgia 30333, USA.
2. 2 Wildlife Health Branch, Biological Resources Division, National Park Service, 1201 Oakridge Drive, Fort Collins, Colorado 80525, USA.
3. 3 Bacterial Diseases Branch, Division of Vector-Borne Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 3156 Rampart Road, Fort Collins, Colorado 80521, USA.
4. 4 Devils Tower National Monument, National Park Service, PO Box 10, Devils Tower, Wyoming 82714, USA.

Abstract

Tularemia is a bacterial zoonosis caused by Francisella tularensis. We conducted a serosurvey of black-tailed prairie dogs ( Cynomys ludovicianus) in

Devils Tower National Monument, Wyoming, following an epizootic in voles ( Microtus spp.) due to F. tularensis. Only 1 of 44 (2%) sampled prairie dogs was seropositive for F. tularensis, providing evidence of survival and potentially limited spread among free-ranging prairie dogs.
PMID: 30920904

Endangered wildlife are getting dosed with rat poisons

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People who consider rodents to be pests often turn to an array of products, known as anticoagulant rodenticides, which are marketed to lethally “solve” the issue with poisoned bait. But researchers have been collecting evidence for years showing that it’s not just nuisance rats that can end up dead.

Some of the most recent studies, conducted in California, found that everything from Pacific fishers to bobcats to northern spotted owls often become victims of rodenticides. The list of potentially affected wildlife is long – basically anything that preys on a rodent could be at risk, because the poisons are so toxic they travel up the food chain, and in some cases, can remain in an animal’s body for years. It can even leapfrog in utero from one generation to the next.

 

 

Read more:  Poison

Thom Smith | NatureWatch: Proposed border wall will impact 93 endangered and threatened species

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A new study by the Center for Biological Diversity in Tucson, Ariz., claims President Trump’s border wall threatens 93 endangered and threatened species, including jaguars, ocelots, Mexican gray wolves and cactus ferruginous pygmy owls.

This Aug. 12, 2017, photo shows posters in support of Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge, home to 400-plus species of birds and several endangered wildcats, at a rally in Mission, Texas. The U.S. government carefully designed a path of least resistance to building a border wall in Texas, picking the wildlife refuge and other places it already owns or controls to quickly begin construction. All it needed was Congress to approve the money. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)

Read more:  Wall

Evaluation of Five Pulicides to Suppress Fleas on Black-Tailed Prairie Dogs: Encouraging Long-Term Results with Systemic 0.005% Fipronil.

by

 

1. Vector Borne Zoonotic Dis. 2019 Jan 8. doi: 10.1089/vbz.2018.2339. [Epub ahead of print]

Eads DA 1, Biggins DE 2, Bowser J 2, Broerman K 2, Livieri TM 3, Childers E 4, Dobesh P 5, Griebel RL 5.

Author information:
1. 1 Department of Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado.
2. 2 U.S. Geological Survey, Fort Collins Science Center, Fort Collins, Colorado.
3. 3 Prairie Wildlife Research, Wellington, Colorado.
4. 4 National Park Service, Badlands National Park, Interior, South Dakota.
5. 5 U.S. Forest Service, Wall, South Dakota.

Abstract

Plague, a flea-borne disease, hampers efforts to restore populations of black-footed ferrets (Mustela nigripes), which occupy colonies of prairie dogs (Cynomys spp.) in North America. Plague is managed by infusing prairie dog burrows with DeltaDust® 0.05% deltamethrin, a pulicide that kills fleas. Experiments are needed to identify pulicides that can be used in rotation with DeltaDust for integrated plague management. In South Dakota, USA, we tested the efficacy of four pulicide dusts when applied at a rate of 8 g per burrow on colonies of black-tailed prairie dogs (Cynomys ludovicianus): Sevin® 5% carbaryl; Dusta-cide® 6% malathion; Alpine® 0.25% dinotefuran with 95% diatomaceous earth; and Tri-Die® 1% pyrethrum with 40% amorphous silica and 10% piperonyl butoxide. We also tested systemic 0.005% fipronil, which was distributed as ½ cup of laced grain per burrow. We sampled prairie dogs on 3294 occasions and detected 10,041 fleas. Sevin and Dusta-cide suppressed fleas but only for 1 month. Neither Alpine nor Tri-Die had any noticeable, consistent effect on fleas. Fipronil suppressed fleas by 97-100% for 3 months. The residual effect of fipronil persisted for ∼12 months. Efficacy of fipronil seems comparable with DeltaDust, which exhibited a residual effect for ∼10 months in prior studies. Continued research is needed to optimize fipronil treatments for plague management on prairie dog colonies.
PMID: 30620249

Investigation of the utility of feces and hair as non-invasive measures of glucocorticoids in wild black-tailed prairie dogs (Cynomys ludovicianus).

by

 

1. Gen Comp Endocrinol. 2019 Feb 5. pii: S0016-6480(18)30251-X. doi: 10.1016/j.ygcen.2019.02.003. [Epub ahead of print]

Crill C 1, Janz DM 2, Kusch JM 3, Santymire RM 4, Heyer GP 3, Shury TK 5, Lane JE 3.

Author information:
1. Department of Biology, University of Saskatchewan, Canada. Electronic address: colleen.crill@gmail.com.
2. Department of Veterinary Biomedical Sciences, University of Saskatchewan, Canada.
3. Department of Biology, University of Saskatchewan, Canada.
4. Davee Center for Epidemiology and Endocrinology, Lincoln Park Zoo, United States.
5. Parks Canada Agency, Canada.

Abstract

Non-invasive measures of glucocorticoid (GC) hormones and their metabolites, particularly in feces and hair, are gaining popularity as wildlife management tools, but species-specific validations of these tools remain rare. We report the results of a validation on black-tailed prairie dogs (Cynomys ludovicianus), a highly social engineer of the grasslands ecosystem that has experienced recent population declines. We captured adult female prairie dogs and brought them into temporary captivity to conduct an adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) stimulation test, assessing the relationship between plasma GC and fecal glucocorticoid metabolite (FGM) levels following a single injection of a low (4 IU/kg) or high dose (12 IU/kg) of ACTH, compared to a single injection of saline. We also gave repeated injections of ACTH to adult females to assess whether this would result in an increase of hair cortisol concentrations, compared with control individuals repeatedly injected with saline. A single injection of ACTH at either low or high dose peaked plasma cortisol levels after 30 min, and thereafter the cortisol levels declined until 120 min, where they returned to pre-treatment levels comparable to those of the saline injected group. Despite the significant elevation of plasma cortisol in the treatment groups following ACTH injection, the elevation of FGM levels in the treatment groups were not significantly different from those in the control group over the following 12 hours. Repeated injection of a high dose of ACTH failed to increase hair cortisol concentration in treatment animals. Instead, hair cortisol levels remained comparable to the pre-treatment mean, despite an increase in post-treatment hair cortisol levels seen in the saline-injected group. The magnitude of increase in the saline control group was comparable to natural seasonal variation seen in unmanipulated individuals. These results highlight that while measurement of GCs and their metabolites in feces and hair are potentially valuable conservation tools, further validation work is required before these matrices can be to real-world conservation applications.

Copyright © 2019. Published by Elsevier Inc.
PMID: 30735671

An improved method for detecting torpor entrance and arousal in a mammalian hibernator using heart rate data.

by

Item 1 of 1    ( Display the citation in PubMed)

 

1. J Exp Biol. 2018 Feb 22;221(Pt 4). pii: jeb174508. doi: 10.1242/jeb.174508.

MacCannell ADV 1, Jackson EC 2, Mathers KE 3, Staples JF 3.

Author information:
1. Department of Biology, University of Western Ontario, London ON, N6A5B8, Canada amaccann@uwo.ca.
2. Department of Computer Science, University of Western Ontario, London ON, N6A5B7, Canada.
3. Department of Biology, University of Western Ontario, London ON, N6A5B8, Canada.

Abstract

We used electrocardiogram (ECG) telemeters to measure the heart rate of hibernating Ictidomys tridecemlineatus (thirteen-lined ground squirrel). An increase in heart rate from 2.2 to 5 beats min-1 accurately identified arousal from torpor before any change in body temperature was detected. Variability in raw heart rate data was significantly reduced by a forward-backward Butterworth low-pass filter, allowing for discrete differential analysis. A decrease in filtered heart rate to 70% of maximum values in interbout euthermia (from approximately 312 to 235 beats min-1) accurately detected entrance into torpor bouts. At this point, body temperature had fallen from 36.1°C to only 34.7°C, much higher than the 30°C typically used to identify entrance. Using these heart rate criteria allowed advanced detection of entrance and arousal (detected 51.9 and 76 min earlier, respectively), compared with traditional body temperature criteria. This method will improve our ability to detect biochemical and molecular markers underlying these transition periods, during which many physiological changes occur.

© 2018. Published by The Company of Biologists Ltd.

Free Article
PMID: 29361606 [Indexed for MEDLINE]

Where the Bison Roam

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For example, we know that prairie dogs have a significant and visible footprint on the prairie. Prairie dogs eat a lot of grass, which can alter the types of grass that are on the grasslands. They also serve as prey for many predators.

Another keystone species, bison, are the architects of the prairies. They break up the turf with their hooves and create wallows during their dust baths, which create depressions and fill up with water when it rains. They are big animals who have a big impact on the landscape.

 

Read more:  Prairie

Effects of Deltamethrin Treatment on Small Mammal and Ectoparasite Population Dynamics and Plague Prevalence in a North American Mixed-Grass Prairie System.

by

Maestas LP1, Britten HB1.

Author information

Department of Biology, University of South Dakota, Vermillion, South Dakota.

Abstract

Sylvatic plague affects many species in North American prairie ecosystems. Deltamethrin is commonly used to manage fleas in potential outbreak areas. Understanding the role of small mammals and their ectoparasites in sylvatic plague maintenance is pertinent to understanding the ecology of plague and its persistence in nature. This study examined the effects of plague management using deltamethrin on communities of small mammals, their flea faunas, and Yersinia pestis prevalence. We trapped small mammals from 2014 to 2016 on the Lower Brule Indian Reservation (LOBR), South Dakota, and analyzed the effects of deltamethrin treatment on small mammal populations, flea loads, and Y. pestis prevalence. We collected higher flea loads from small mammals on sites not treated with deltamethrin (1.10 fleas per animal) than from deltamethrin-treated sites (1.03 fleas per animal). We observed significant negative trends in mean flea load per animal between pre- and post-treatment collections. We detected no significant effects of deltamethrin treatment on animal captures pre- and post-treatment, but observed significant differences in animal captures by experimental unit. We detected no serological evidence for the presence of Y. pestis antibodies in small mammals and 1.2% Y. pestis prevalence across all sampled fleas. Although there is little overlap in the species of fleas infesting small mammals and prairie dogs, the occurrence of flea spillover has been documented. In our study, treatment with deltamethrin reduced flea loads on small mammals by up to 49%. Our data suggest that although the efficacy of deltamethrin on the LOBR-a mixed-grass system-may not be as high as that found in a comparable study in a short-grass system, deltamethrin is still a useful tool in the management of plague.

KEYWORDS:

; South Dakota; deltamethrin; fleas; plague management; small mammals

Do Animals Hate the Bitter Cold of Winter?

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Animals can certainly feel the cold, and many species have developed unique ways of dealing with it

While the weather outside may indeed get frightful this winter, a parka, knit hat, wool socks, insulated boots and maybe a roaring fire make things bearable for people who live in cold climates. But what about all the wildlife out there? Won’t they be freezing?

Anyone who’s walked their dog when temperatures are frigid knows that canines will shiver and favor a cold paw – which partly explains the boom in the pet clothing industry. But chipmunks and cardinals don’t get fashionable coats or booties.

In fact, wildlife can succumb to frostbite and hypothermia, just like people and pets. In the northern United States, the unfurred tails of opossums are a common casualty of cold exposure. Every so often an unusual cold snap in Florida results in iguanas falling from trees and manatees dying from cold stress.

Read more:  COLD

Prairie Dog Burrow Timelapse

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This is a very nice video about who visits a prairie dog burrow!  Check it out!  Time Lapse

Hi All,

For those of you who were not already coerced into commenting on early drafts  – we made a fun time lapse video from still photos collected by one of our Reconyx cameras on a prairie dog colony north of Fort Collins this fall.  It just got posted this morning to CPW’s Facebook and YouTube pages.

Thanks to all those who have helped with the video or elsewhere on the project!  Feel free to share or make use of the video if you have the need.

– Reesa

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CpJYrZ2MMJk

https://www.facebook.com/104599519602883/posts/2149977435065071/

 

—

Reesa Yale Conrey

Avian Researcher

Colorado Parks and Wildlife

317 West Prospect Rd.

Fort Collins, CO 80526

Phone: 970-472-4384

Email: reesa.conrey@state.co.us

Third cat tests positive for bubonic plague in Wyoming

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For the third time in recent months, a cat has tested positive for bubonic plague in Wyoming, the state’s Department of Health reports. No human cases have been identified, but health officials warn the disease can be passed to people from infected animals.

 The most recent case involved a cat in the small town of Kaycee. Officials said the animal was known to wander outdoors. The disease was confirmed by the Wyoming State Veterinary Laboratory in Laramie.

Read more:  Wyoming

Denver Water Prairie Dog Update

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Jan 15, 2019 — 

As many of you know, Denver Water took out a kill contract with Ronnie Purcella of Animal and Pest Control Specialists to needlessly kill two beautiful colonies of prairie dogs in Denver and Arapahoe County. The needless slaughter of these sentient beings occurred despite the fact that Denver Water owns over 1200 acres of open prairie land in Jefferson County that they could have easily relocated these colonies to, and they certainly could have allowed them to live in their only homes since there were no construction plans and the prairie dogs were simply living their lives. Obviously, money was no object because they spend over $12,000 hiring ERO resources to do an environmental survey and at least $33,000 hiring an exterminator to kill them.

 

Read more:  Update

PDP Annual Meeting

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Greetings and best wishes for a happy, healthy and prosperous New Year.

Well it is that time again. The Annual Meeting will be held on 3 February 2019 at:
YMCA of Central New Mexico
12500 Comanche Rd. NE

Albuquerque, NM 87111

(505)595-1515 option 2 ext 4105
The annual meeting will be held from 200 to 400 in the building on the south side of the campus. The parking lot is adjacent to Comanche, you walk south passing the main building which will be on your left. I will be meeting with them late January and will provide you with any updates or changes. Hope to see you there.

Evaluation of Five Pulicides to Suppress Fleas on Black-Tailed Prairie Dogs:

by

1. Vector Borne Zoonotic Dis. 2019 Jan 8. doi: 10.1089/vbz.2018.2339. [Epub ahead of

print]
Evaluation of Five Pulicides to Suppress Fleas on Black-Tailed Prairie Dogs:
Encouraging Long-Term Results with Systemic 0.005% Fipronil.
Eads DA(1), Biggins DE(2), Bowser J(2), Broerman K(2), Livieri TM(3), Childers
E(4), Dobesh P(5), Griebel RL(5).
Author information:
(1)1 Department of Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado.
(2)2 U.S. Geological Survey, Fort Collins Science Center, Fort Collins, Colorado.
(3)3 Prairie Wildlife Research, Wellington, Colorado.
(4)4 National Park Service, Badlands National Park, Interior, South Dakota.
(5)5 U.S. Forest Service, Wall, South Dakota.
Plague, a flea-borne disease, hampers efforts to restore populations of
black-footed ferrets (Mustela nigripes), which occupy colonies of prairie dogs
(Cynomys spp.) in North America. Plague is managed by infusing prairie dog
burrows with DeltaDust® 0.05% deltamethrin, a pulicide that kills fleas.
Experiments are needed to identify pulicides that can be used in rotation with
DeltaDust for integrated plague management. In South Dakota, USA, we tested the
efficacy of four pulicide dusts when applied at a rate of 8
g per burrow on
colonies of black-tailed prairie dogs (Cynomys ludovicianus): Sevin® 5% carbaryl;
Dusta-cide® 6% malathion; Alpine® 0.25% dinotefuran with 95% diatomaceous earth;
and Tri-Die® 1% pyrethrum with 40% amorphous silica and 10% piperonyl butoxide.
We also tested systemic 0.005% fipronil, which was distributed as
½
cup of laced
grain per burrow. We sampled prairie dogs on 3294 occasions and detected 10,041
fleas. Sevin and Dusta-cide suppressed fleas but only for 1 month. Neither Alpine
nor Tri-Die had any noticeable, consistent effect on fleas. Fipronil suppressed
fleas by 97-100% for 3 months. The residual effect of fipronil persisted for
∼
12
months. Efficacy of fipronil seems comparable with DeltaDust, which exhibited a
residual effect for
∼
10 months in prior studies. Continued research is needed to
optimize fipronil treatments for plague management on prairie dog colonies.
DOI: 10.1089/vbz.2018.2339
PMID: 30620249
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/portal/utils/file_backend.cgi?Db=p
…
2FPubMedGroup%401.141&BaseUrl=&PortName=live&FileName=
1/12/19, 11N28 AM
Page 1 of 1

Our backyard killing fields

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In recent years, wildlife killing contests have taken root in Minnesota, as well as almost every other state in the country. The name is straightforward: they are competitions for killing the most — or largest, or smallest — of a certain species of wildlife within a designated time period. The most common victims are coyotes, but mountain lions, wolves, raccoons, foxes, crows, rabbits, bobcats and prairie dogs are all targeted as well. Three of these horrific contests are soon to take place in our backyard.

Contestants, who sometimes are children, typically pay a registration fee to the sponsoring organization, which might be a sportsman’s club, a local restaurant or bar, a veterans organization or even a chamber of commerce.

Read More:  Killing Contests

Michigan family the first to visit to all 418 U.S. National Parks

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Favorite Places:  For 14-year-old Gerald, it’s actually Isle Royale here in Michigan. For 16-year-old Jamison, it’s Katmai National Park in Alaska. Mom says hers is more of a favorite memory, which was seeing all the prairie dogs at a prairie dog town in Theodore Roosevelt National Park in North and South Dakota.

What’s happening in Nebraska

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Protection for mountain lions and prairie dogs:

  • Chambers’ LB 46 would end mountain lion hunting in Nebraska. Another Chambers bill, LB 45, would repeal a law allowing counties to eradicate prairie dogs on private land.

City of Lawton pays fine for prairie dog mismanagement

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LAWTON (KFDX/KJTL) – The Prairie Dog Park in Wichita Falls is well known, but north of the Red River, there’s one in Elmer Thomas Park, but new developments have revealed the city of Lawton will have to pay a state fine due to prairie dog mismanagement.

Those violations include the city’s use of pesticides, storage, licensing and record keeping.

The city contested some of the allegations.

Read more:  Lawton

Coyote-killing contests banned

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SANTA FE – Just over a week after being sworn into office, state Land Commissioner Stephanie Garcia Richard has taken aim at coyote-killing contests on 9 million acres of New Mexico state trust land.

In an executive order that could prove difficult to enforce, the recently elected land commissioner described the organized killing contests as being inconsistent with sound land management and damaging to the natural order between predators and prey.

“These are not hunting contests – they are animal cruelty contests,” said Garcia Richard, who was joined by more than a dozen environmental and wildlife advocates at a Thursday news conference at the State Land Office.

Read more:  Ban

 

Happy New Year!

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To all of our friends and supporters out there from all of us here at Prairie Dog Pals. Best wishes for a happy, healthy and prosperous New Year! Woo Hoo!!!!!

Residents upset with Denver Water over prairie dog management

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DENVER — A neighborhood was convinced Denver Water was working with them to protect a colony of prairie dogs, but the utility company decided to hire an exterminator instead.

The small rodents are living on a lot owned by Denver Water near Quebec Way and Florida Avenue. Some residents complained that the animals were digging holes and getting too close to children.

Read more:  Denver

Annual Meeting

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The annual meeting of Prairie Dog Pals will occur on 3 February 2019.  The “usual place” is not available and we are looking at a couple of different venues.  Regardless, the General Meeting will be held from 200-400 PM at a location to be determined, in Albuquerque, I’ll keep you informed of developments.

Yavapai County Board of Supervisors (AZ) Passes Proclamation Condemning Wildlife Killing Contests

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YAVAPAI COUNTY, Ariz. — The Yavapai County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously yesterday in favor of a proclamation that opposes wildlife killing contests. Arizona citizens belonging to a coalition known as I AM WOLF NATION in partnership with Project Coyote and other wildlife and animal protection organizations have been working to end wildlife killing contests in Yavapai County and other Arizona localities. Yavapai County’s proclamation follows on the heels of a similar Dewey-Humboldt Town Council resolution that passed in November.

 

Read more:  Yavapai

2019 PDP Calendars

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We are now taking orders for the PDP 2019 calendar.
 
Calendars by Sharyn: Sharyn does all of the artwork for Prairie Dog Pals including the cute pictures posted on FB. The calendars are 17 x 11 (open) and have a full sized picture on the top half (8 1/2 x 11) and the calendar with highlighted PD dates on the bottom. They run from February through January and will be available for only a short time. The calendars are $20 and that includes postage. Woo Hoo, you can pay by paypal or network for good but let C Rex know that you are buying a calendar, prairiedogpals@prairiedogpals.org!
 
The calendars will be printed up in January and distributed. There will be some available at the annual meeting on 2 February 2019. If you pick up locally, the cost will be $15.
 
Order now!

Longmont City Council to consider proposed prairie dog control ordinance

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Longmont City Council on Tuesday night will consider for the first time an ordinance that would require property owners to get prairie dog management permits before killing the animals on their properties.

The measure would impose new restrictions and conditions on controlling prairie dogs on both privately and publicly owned properties.

It would revise the city’s current prairie dog regulations that now generally only affect properties that have applied for formal city approval of the owners’ development or redevelopment project proposals.

Read More:  Longmont

 

Colorado Parks and Wildlife, Relocate the Stonegate Prairie Dogs: Stop Poisoning Wildlife!

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Prairie Protection Colorado (PPC) has been working with Stonegate residents to save approximately 30 surviving black-tailed prairie dogs from a recent fumitoxin poisoning in their neighborhood. The Stonegate Village Metropolitan District had every intention to poison these survivors and “finish off” this colony until residents got involved and began to fight for their relocation rather than their annihilation. A new home for these survivors has been found in Sedalia Colorado and the owners of this land would love to welcome these prairie dogs to a healthy and beautiful colony currently existing at this location. 

Read more:  Petition

Holiday Shopping

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Don’t forget to include Prairie Dog Pals when shopping via Amazon Smile!

Rancher Takes a Chance on the Black-footed Ferret

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Rancher Greg Moore is a land steward in the true
sense of the word. Every decision made, every action
taken on his 25,000-acre Wagon Mound Ranch
in the northeastern part of the state is done with
consideration of the health and improvement of the land
for all those who depend on it, including himself, his herd
of 400-some cows, and the wildlife that live on and pass
through the ranch. The ranch is under conservation
easement, held by NMLC, “to protect it from development,”
Greg explains, and to preserve all the improvements he’s
made on the property over the years.
Read more:  Rancher

Garage Sale, this Weekend

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The garage sale will be conducted 5219 Vista Bonita NE on Saturday between 800 AM and 300 PM!  Hope to see you there.  There will be AWESOME STUFF…

Garage Sale

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The final Prairie Dog Pals phantasmagorical garage sale of 2018 (Halloween is coming) will be held on Saturday, 27 October 2018, at 5219 Vista Bonita NE, between the hours of 800 AM and 300 PM. Donate, shop, or just drop by to chat! All are welcome!

If you want to donate you can drop off your treasures at 5219 Vista Bonita NE from Wednesday, 24 October, onwards. Please contact Tania or Ray at 505 237 0347 so that they can have the forklift ready to help you unload. (just kidding) Please provide an inventory (with values) if you want a tax receipt. Also it would be extremely helpful if you could price your items. I mean only you can assess the true value of your treasures, right?

If you want to help with the sale, let Ray know.

Local factors associated with on-host flea distributions on prairie dog colonies.

by

Abstract

Outbreaks of plague, a flea-vectored bacterial disease, occur periodically in prairie dog populations in the western United States. In order to understand the conditions that are conducive to plague outbreaks and potentially predict spatial and temporal variations in risk, it is important to understand the factors associated with flea abundance and distribution that may lead to plague outbreaks. We collected and identified 20,041 fleas from 6,542 individual prairie dogs of four different species over a 4-year period along a latitudinal gradient from Texas to Montana. We assessed local climate and other factors associated with flea prevalence and abundance, as well as the incidence of plague outbreaks. Oropsylla hirsuta, a prairie dog specialist flea, and Pulex simulans, a generalist flea species, were the most common fleas found on our pairs. High elevation pairs in Wyoming and Utah had distinct flea communities compared with the rest of the study pairs. The incidence of prairie dogs with Yersinia pestis detections in fleas was low (n = 64 prairie dogs with positive fleas out of 5,024 samples from 4,218 individual prairie dogs). The results of our regression models indicate that many factors are associated with the presence of fleas. In general, flea abundance (number of fleas on hosts) is higher during plague outbreaks, lower when prairie dogs are more abundant, and reaches peak levels when climate and weather variables are at intermediate levels. Changing climate conditions will likely affect aspects of both flea and host communities, including population densities and species composition, which may lead to changes in plague dynamics. Our results support the hypothesis that local conditions, including host, vector, and environmental factors, influence the likelihood of plague outbreaks, and that predicting changes to plague dynamics under climate change scenarios will have to consider both host and vector responses to local factors.

Read more:  Fleas

Parasitism of Black-Tailed Prairie Dogs by Linognathoides cynomyis (Phthiraptera: Polyplacidae).

by

Abstract

The following study investigates louse parasitism of black-tailed prairie dogs (Cynomys ludovicianus (Ord, Rodentia: Sciuridae)) on 20 plots at 13 colonies in the short-grass prairie of New Mexico, USA, June-August, 2011-2012. Among 124 lice collected from 537 prairie dogs during 1,207 sampling events in which anesthetized animals were combed for ectoparasites, all of the lice were identified as Linognathoides cynomyis (Kim, Phthiraptera: Polyplacidae). Data were analyzed under an information-theoretic approach to identify factors predicting louse parasitism. Lice were most prevalent on plots with high densities of prairie dogs. At the scale of hosts, lice were most abundant on prairie dogs in poor body condition (with low mass:foot ratios) and prairie dogs harboring large numbers of fleas (Siphonaptera, mostly Oropsylla hirsuta (Baker, Siphonaptera: Ceratophyllidae) and Pulex simulans (Baker,Siphonaptera: Pulicidae)). Lice have been implicated as supplemental vectors of the primarily flea-borne bacterium Yersinia pestis (Yersin, Enterobacteriales: Yersiniaceae), a re-emerging pathogen that causes sylvatic plague in prairie dog populations. Coparasitism by lice and fleas, as found herein, might enhance plague transmission. L. cynomyis deserves attention in this context.

Read more:  Parasite

Amyloid-producing Odontoameloblastoma in a Black-tailed Prairie Dog (Cynomys ludovicianus)

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A 6-year-old female black-tailed prairie dog (Cynomys ludovicianus) was presented with a space-occupying lesion in the left submandibular region. On computed tomography, a low attenuating, poorly circumscribed mass infiltrated the left mandibular bone, with osteolytic change. Microscopically, the lesion was composed of odontogenic epithelium proliferating in nests and embedded in abundant dental papilla-like ectomesenchyme, including dentine and enamel. Multifocal amyloid deposition was observed. Immunohistochemically, the neoplastic epithelial cells were positive for cytokeratin (CK) AE1/AE3, CK14 and p63. Some epithelial cells were positive for amelogenin and some adjacent to the amyloid deposits co-expressed S100. The ectomesenchymal cells expressed vimentin and strong S100 immunoreactivity was observed in odontoblast-like cells. The amyloid was immunolabelled with amelogenin. The tumour was diagnosed as amyloid-producing odontoameloblastoma.

Read more: Odontoama

Summer Garage Sale

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The Summer garage sale will be held on Friday, 24 August and Saturday 25 August from 8AM to 4PM (may close earlier on Saturday if things are slow).  It will be held at 917 Morris St NE and will be run by Debbie Stevenson and other volunteers. If you have donations for the Garage Sale you can contact Debbie on 505 205 7966  to arrange for a drop off.

So we have started collecting donations. If you want to help with the sale, or have something to donate, of know someone who has stuff to donate, we are now accepting volunteers and donations!

If you want an acknowledgement letter please give Ed Urbanski an inventory and value (total will work).

4,000-year-old genomes point to origins of bubonic plague

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Geneticists are a step closer to understanding how plague evolved into one of the great scourges of human history. Yersinia pestis, the bacterium that causes bubonic plague, spreads through the bites of infected fleas. In the flea’s gut, plague bacteria multiply until a mass of bacteria blocks the passage to the flea’s stomach. The starving flea bites a host and feeds frantically, but since it can’t swallow its meal, it ends up regurgitating blood and bacteria back into its prey’s bloodstream, spreading the disease to a new host.

Read more:  Plague

Impact of Sylvatic Plague Vaccine on Non-target Small Rodents in Grassland Ecosystems.

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Abstract

Oral vaccination is an emerging management strategy to reduce the prevalence of high impact infectious diseases within wild animal populations. Plague is a flea-borne zoonosis of rodents that often decimates prairie dog (Cynomys spp.) colonies in the western USA. Recently, an oral sylvatic plague vaccine (SPV) was developed to protect prairie dogs from plague and aid recovery of the endangered black-footed ferret (Mustela nigripes). Although oral vaccination programs are targeted toward specific species, field distribution of vaccine-laden baits can result in vaccine uptake by non-target animals and unintended indirect effects. We assessed the impact of SPV on non-target rodents at paired vaccine and placebo-treated prairie dog colonies in four US states from 2013 to 2015. Bait consumption by non-target rodents was high (70.8%, n = 3113), but anti-plague antibody development on vaccine plots was low (23.7%, n = 266). In addition, no significant differences were noted in combined deer mice (Peromyscus maniculatus) and western harvest mouse (Reithrodontomys megalotis) abundance or community evenness and richness of non-target rodents between vaccine-treated and placebo plots. In our 3-year field study, we could not detect a significant positive or negative effect of SPV application on non-target rodents.

Read more:  Vaccine

RESISTANCE TO DELTAMETHRIN IN PRAIRIE DOG ( CYNOMYS LUDOVICIANUS) FLEAS IN THE FIELD AND IN THE LABORATORY.

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Abstract

Sylvatic plague poses a substantial risk to black-tailed prairie dogs ( Cynomys ludovicianus) and their obligate predator, the black-footed ferret ( Mustela nigripes). The effects of plague on prairie dogs and ferrets are mitigated using a deltamethrin pulicide dust that reduces the spread of plague by killing fleas, the vector for the plague bacterium. In portions of Conata Basin, Buffalo Gap National Grasslands, and Badlands National Park, South Dakota, 0.05% deltamethrin has been infused into prairie dog burrows on an annual basis since 2005. We aimed to determine if fleas ( Oropsylla hirsuta) in portions of the Conata Basin and Badlands National Park have evolved resistance to deltamethrin. We assessed flea prevalence, obtained by combing prairie dogs for fleas, as an indirect measure of resistance. Dusting was ineffective in two colonies treated with deltamethrin for >8 yr; flea prevalence rebounded within 1 mo of dusting. We used a bioassay that exposed fleas to deltamethrin to directly evaluate resistance. Fleas from colonies with >8 yr of exposure to deltamethrin exhibited survival rates that were 15% to 83% higher than fleas from sites that had never been dusted. All fleas were paralyzed or dead after 55 min. After removal from deltamethrin, 30% of fleas from the dusted colonies recovered, compared with 1% of fleas from the not-dusted sites. Thus, deltamethrin paralyzed fleas from colonies with long-term exposure to deltamethrin, but a substantial number of those fleas was resistant and recovered. Flea collections from live-trapped prairie dogs in Thunder Basin National Grasslands, Wyoming suggest that, in some cases, fleas might begin to develop a moderate level of resistance to deltamethrin after 5-6 yr of annual treatments. Restoration of black-footed ferrets and prairie dogs will rely on an adaptive, integrative approach to plague management, for instance involving the use of vaccines and rotating applications of insecticidal products with different active ingredients.

Read more:  PubMed

Treatment of black-tailed prairie dog burrows with deltamethrin to control fleas (Insecta: Siphonaptera) and plague.

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Abstract

Burrows within black-tailed prairie dog (Cynomys ludovicianus) colonies on the Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge, Colorado, were dusted with deltamethrin insecticide to reduce flea (Insecta: Siphonaptera) abundance. Flea populations were monitored pre- and posttreatment by combing prairie dogs and collecting fleas from burrows. A single application of deltamethrin significantly reduced populations of the plague vector Oropsylla hirsuta, and other flea species on prairie dogs and in prairie dog burrows for at least 84 d. A plague epizootic on the Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge caused high mortality of prairie dogs on some untreated colonies, but did not appear to affect nearby colonies dusted with deltamethrin.

Read more: PubMed

SEASON OF DELTAMETHRIN APPLICATION AFFECTS FLEA AND PLAGUE CONTROL IN WHITE-TAILED PRAIRIE DOG (CYNOMYS LEUCURUS) COLONIES, COLORADO, USA.

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Abstract

In 2008 and 2009, we evaluated the duration of prophylactic deltamethrin treatments in white-tailed prairie dog ( Cynomys leucurus ) colonies and compared effects of autumn or spring dust application in suppressing flea numbers and plague. Plague occurred before and during our experiment. Overall, flea abundance tended to increase from May or June to September, but it was affected by deltamethrin treatment and plague dynamics. Success in trapping prairie dogs (animals caught/trap days) declined between June and September at all study sites. However, by September trap success on dusted sites (19%; 95% confidence interval [CI] 16-22%) was about 15-fold greater than on undusted control sites (1%; CI 0.3-4%; P≤0.0001). Applying deltamethrin dust as early as 12 mo prior seemed to afford some protection to prairie dogs. Our data showed that dusting even a portion of a prairie dog colony can prolong its persistence despite epizootic plague. Autumn dusting may offer advantages over spring in suppressing overwinter or early-spring flea activity, but timing should be adjusted to precede the annual decline in aboveground activity for hibernating prairie dog species. Large colony complexes or collections of occupied but fragmented habitat may benefit from dusting some sites in spring and others in autumn to maximize flea suppression in a portion of the complex or habitat year-round.

Read more:  PubMed

Flea abundance, diversity, and plague in Gunnison’s prairie dogs (Cynomys gunnisoni) and their burrows in montane grasslands in northern New Mexico.

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Abstract

Plague, a flea-transmitted infectious disease caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis, is a primary threat to the persistence of prairie dog populations (Cynomys spp.). We conducted a 3-yr survey (2004-2006) of fleas from Gunnison’s prairie dogs (Cynomys gunnisoni) and their burrows in montane grasslands in Valles Caldera National Preserve in New Mexico. Our objectives were to describe flea communities and identify flea and rodent species important to the maintenance of plague. We live-trapped prairie dogs and conducted burrow sweeps at three colonies in spring and summer of each year. One hundred thirty prairie dogs and 51 golden-mantled ground squirrels (Spermophilus lateralis) were captured over 3,640 trap nights and 320 burrows were swabbed for fleas. Five flea species were identified from prairie dogs and ground squirrels and four were identified from burrow samples. Oropsylla hirsuta was the most abundant species found on prairie dogs and in burrows. Oropsylla idahoensis was most common on ground squirrels. Two colonies experienced plague epizootics in fall 2004. Plague-positive fleas were recovered from burrows (O. hirsuta and Oropsylla tuberculata tuberculata) and a prairie dog (O. hirsuta) in spring 2005 and summer 2006. Three prairie dogs collected in summer 2005 and 2006 had plague antibody. We found a significant surge in flea abundance and prevalence, particularly within burrows, following plague exposure. We noted an increased tendency for flea exchange opportunities in the spring before O. hirsuta reached its peak population. We hypothesize that the role of burrows as a site of flea exchange, particularly between prairie dogs and ground squirrels, may be as important as summer conditions that lead to buildup in O. hirsuta populations for determining plague outbreaks.

Read more:  PubMed

Burrow Dusting or Oral Vaccination Prevents Plague-Associated Prairie Dog Colony Collapse.

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Abstract

Plague impacts prairie dogs (Cynomys spp.), the endangered black-footed ferret (Mustela nigripes) and other sensitive wildlife species. We compared efficacy of prophylactic treatments (burrow dusting with deltamethrin or oral vaccination with recombinant “sylvatic plague vaccine” [RCN-F1/V307]) to placebo treatment in black-tailed prairie dog (C. ludovicianus) colonies. Between 2013 and 2015, we measured prairie dog apparent survival, burrow activity and flea abundance on triplicate plots (“blocks”) receiving dust, vaccine or placebo treatment. Epizootic plague affected all three blocks but emerged asynchronously. Dust plots had fewer fleas per burrow (P < 0.0001), and prairie dogs captured on dust plots had fewer fleas (P < 0.0001) than those on vaccine or placebo plots. Burrow activity and prairie dog density declined sharply in placebo plots when epizootic plague emerged. Patterns in corresponding dust and vaccine plots were less consistent and appeared strongly influenced by timing of treatment applications relative to plague emergence. Deltamethrin or oral vaccination enhanced apparent survival within two blocks. Applying insecticide or vaccine prior to epizootic emergence blunted effects of plague on prairie dog survival and abundance, thereby preventing colony collapse. Successful plague mitigation will likely entail strategic combined uses of burrow dusting and oral vaccination within large colonies or colony complexes.

Read More:  PubMed

Plague in a Colony of Gunnison’s Prairie Dogs ( Cynomys gunnisoni) Despite Three Years of Infusions of Burrows with 0.05% Deltamethrin to Kill Fleas.

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Abstract

  At Valles Caldera National Preserve in New Mexico, US, infusing Gunnison’s prairie dog ( Cynomys gunnisoni) burrows with an insecticide dust containing 0.05% deltamethrin killed fleas which transmit bubonic plague. The reduction in the number of fleas per prairie dog was significant and dramatic immediately after infusions, with a suggestion that the reduction persisted for as long as 12 mo. Despite the lower flea counts, however, a plague epizootic killed >95% of prairie dogs after 3 yr of infusions (once per year). More research is necessary for a better understanding of the efficacy of insecticide dusts at lowering flea counts and protecting prairie dogs from plague.

PMID:
29286262
DOI:
10.7589/2017-04-089

Read more:  PubMed

Love or hate them, prairie dogs play role in ecosystem

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Prairie dogs – some hate them, some love them. Regardless, they play a vital role in the sagebrush and grass landscape of Wyoming.

“They can cause a lot of problems for landowners,” turning a hayfield into an 18-hole golf course, admitted Destin Harrell, wildlife biologist with the BLM’s Cody Field Office. Yet, he pointed out, they enrich the land by building dirt towns and have an extensive web of dependent species. He championed their persistence and preservation.

“There are places we want them and places we don’t want them,” he added, and it’s important to identify those areas.

 

 

Read More:  Cody

What’s so great about prairie dogs anyway?

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What’s so great about prairie dogs anyway?

Lindsey Sterling Krank with the Humane Society of the United States’ Prairie Dog Coalition presented on the prairie dog populations and conservation efforts underway to protect these rapidly declining and often misunderstood animals. Krank highlighted three main points in favor of preserving prairie dog populations: they are a keystone species, they have a complex communication system, and 95 percent of their population has been eliminated already.

Krank explained prairie dogs are a keystone species because 200 other species are associated with them and their habitats and nine other species directly rely on them. Prairie dogs contribute to their ecosystem by providing a prey species to certain predators like hawks. Krank cited the example of Ferruginous Hawks, whose numbers are in decline because of habitat loss, prey loss and because of secondary poisoning through prairie dogs being poisoned. In addition to being prey, other species utilize their burrows, like Black-Footed Ferrets, Burrowing Owls and the Mountain Plover. Krank also stated prairie dogs provide more floral abundance and don’t actually destroy the grasslands around them, but keep the grass shorter to monitor for predators near their burrows. “The more heterogeneity, the more biodiversity,” Krank added.

Krank presented research by Dr. Don Slobadchikoff, who studied the prairie dogs language, which has been decoded more than the communication of whales, chimpanzees and dolphins. The prairie dogs have alarm calls that vary based on species, with Krank playing their distinct alarms for coyotes, dogs and humans, noting they never confuse dogs and coyotes, even when the two are similar in appearance.  Prairie dogs also have a sentence structure that includes nouns, adjectives and verbs, confirmed in a study where the same woman approached a prairie dog colony in differently colored shirts and the alarms varied when describing the color of the shirt. Slobadchikoff’s research also found prairie dogs have different dialects by region and local districts.

There are five species of prairie dogs and all have lost a combined 95 percent of their population through habitat loss, poisoning, recreational shooting and sylvatic plague. Krank noted “the perception that prairie dogs are everywhere because you see them in medians” and in other small spaces where they don’t belong isn’t accurate, because finding them in those locations means urban sprawl and agricultural expansion has chased them out of the spaces they would normally live. Krank also noted a lot of the acceptance for poisoning the animals comes from research done by C.H. Merriam which gained popularity during the New Deal Era when he concluded it takes 318 prairie dogs to eat as much grass as one cow, which was inaccurate because the prairie dogs don’t destroy the grass, just trim it and this justified moving cattle into the prairie dogs existing habitats.

Sylvatic plague is not a disease native to prairie dogs, but is given to them by bacteria carried in fleas. Prairie dogs actually are not carriers and don’t have an immunity to the plague, they die from it, unlike unaffected carriers like coyotes and 77 other species. In humans, the plague can be treated with a 10-day course of antibiotics and it’s largely no longer a significant health threat. To combat the plague, conservationists are using mild pesticides to kill the fleas and are immunizing prairie dogs and black footed ferrets with a vaccine distributed with oral bait.

To change the public perception of prairie dogs, conservationists are framing the discussion from a cost-benefit angle. Poisoning prairie dogs is actually an economic loss, Krank explained and because they are a prey species, having colonies near where people live keeps dogs and cats safer. There is also more forage for other animals on prairie dog colony areas than off.

Prairie dog recovery relies on identifying key conservation areas, working with willing partners and completing wild to wild relocation or translocation efforts or building up passive relocation, like establishing natural barriers to encourage them to move out of dangerous areas. When completing relocations, coteries (family units) have to be kept together. Advocates are also looking at incentivized and voluntary landowner conservation efforts. The last attempt at landowner incentives fell through when plague killed the population in question before anything was finalized. There are several ways concerned individuals can help prairie dogs by donating to the Prairie Dog Coalition or “adopting” prairie dogs. More information can be found at http://www.humanesociety.org/about/departments/prairie_dog_coalition/index.html.