Prairie Dog Pals

Dedicated to the Preservation of Prairie Dogs and their Habitat

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.

Wildlife advocacy organizations host multi-city premiere screenings of new documentary film, seeking to end coyote killing contests in New Mexico

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Santa Fe, N.M. – In advance of the 2017 New Mexico legislative session, a coalition of non-profit wildlife advocacy organizations are hosting the United States premiere of a new documentary film to raise awareness, debunk myths and inspire action to end the cruel and senseless slaughter of wildlife in killing contests. By showing the film in several locations across the state, opponents of wildlife killing contests hope to grow active support among New Mexico citizens for impending legislation to end the barbaric death games targeting coyotes.

Read more at:  Coyote

Prairie dogs are a nuisance for most farmers and ranchers

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This article is obviously biased against prairie dogs, but does provide an insight into the mindset of farmers and ranchers.  There are numerous studies documenting that prairie dogs do not compete with cattle for forage as there are numerous studies documenting the opposite.  It is just a matter of who performed the study.  I think the answer to this is that prairie dogs become an issue for farmers and ranchers AFTER farmers and ranchers have turned PRAIRIE into farms and ranches.  Read the article at:Farms and Ranches

Drought affecting prairie dog population

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June 14, 2014

 

By Vanessa Kahin
Staff writer
vkahin@cnjonline.com

 

Loathed, protested and even poisoned — Clovis’ prairie dogs appear to be dwindling, but it may have more to do with Mother Nature than anything humankind has perpetrated.

 

Local environmentalist Susan Hubby — who protested the Clovis City Commission’s decision to poison the prairie dogs at Ned Houk Park last year — said that drought may be the reason behind what she perceives to be fewer prairie dogs in the area.

 

“Many did not make it this season from the drought,” she said, adding that recent rains may help prairie dogs’ plant food source to grow.

Read More:  Drought

Protect or curb?

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The prairie dog, reviled by landowners and rejected in most parts for potential protection as a AR-140429682threatened or endangered species, nevertheless has the sympathy of at least one public body.

Starting in 2007, the Colorado Department of Transportation developed a policy which, if not beating the drum for the rodent, at least aims to maintain a viable population of the critters.

Read More:  Protect

Unintentional cruelty: Are prairie dog relocations worth their mortality?

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Spring marks the annual beginning of an increasingly popular non-lethal method of removing 104351404-gunnisons-prairieunwanted prairie dogs: Relocation of entire segments to more suitable and protected habitat.

But the job isn’t for sissies or the faint of heart, because there is a huge amount of work and preparation involved, with a variety of associated challenges, including potentially fatal consequences for a number of prairie dogs—sometimes even if the job is done by experts.

Read More:  Relocation

 

 

 

 

Boot Hill gives its original residents the boot!

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Why did the prairie dog cross the road? Possibly to get to Boot Hill Ranch Estates.

At the April 9 meeting of the Custer County Commission, Les McClanahan, a Boot Hill resident, came before the commission to express his and his neighbors’ uneasiness with a prairie dog town that has grown on land south of Hwy. 16 across from Boot Hill. The land is sandwiched between American Presidents Resort and Granite Heights Drive. McClanahan wondered if the county had any authority to eliminate prairie dogs on private land.

Read More:  Boot Hill

Should animal cognition be considered by lawmakers for conservation policies?

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Should animal cognition be considered by lawmakers for conservation policies? Many scientists believe it should.

The Humane Society Institute for Science & Policy is sponsoring a symposium next week in Washington, D.C., entitled “The Science of Animal Thinking and Emotion: Sentience as a Factor in Policy and Practice.”

Excerpt from the website:

Science is making stunning discoveries about animal cognition, awareness and emotion. How can we leverage this information for positive change in government and industry? This two-day conference brings together thought-leaders in the science and implications of animal sentience, and influential voices in the policy and corporate domains. As the bedrock of ethics, sentience deserves a more prominent place in the legislative and corporate landscape.

Read more at:  Cognition

Meet the Prairie Dog And its friend, the burrowing owl, By Richard “Bugman” Fagerlund

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Meet the prairie dog. These beautiful animals are true angels of God. They live in little villages and mind their imageown business. They do not destroy any crops and do not carry any diseases even though they are constantly blamed for spreading the plague. In reality, plague fleas (genus Oropsylla) can live on other animals such as squirrels, pack rats and other rodents and even breed in their burrows. When plague fleas get into prairie dog villages, they kill the prairie dogs. If you have a colony of prairie dogs near your home, they are healthy and do not have plague fleas. That is a myth perpetuated by people who do not know any better or who just want to kill them. They do not cripple horses and cattle as some other people claim. Most horses and cattle watch where they are walking and can easily go around a very visible prairie dog village. If a horse is ridden fast through an unknown area, an accident could happen. It is the responsibility of the horse owner to know where they are going on the horse. It isn’t the prairie dogs’ fault.

Read more:  Bugman

Prairie Dogs and Nuclear Waste: Who would have known!

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Rodney Baltzer, President of WCS, explained to the NY Times that the company has dug a huge pit in Andrews Country, Texas, with other planned to be dug over the next few years, into which a base layer of nearly waterproof clay has been set. Then a layer of concrete was poured on top, reinforced with steel, and then three layers of plastic. The low-level nuclear waste is loaded into large concrete containers and then placed in the pit, which once full will then be covered by a 40-foot thick cap of concrete, clay, and finally a special cap to prevent prairie dogs from burrowing into the area.

Read more at:  Nuclear Waste

Slaughter of the Innocents: Yes, Uncle Sam Is Really Planning to Kill 16,000 Prairie Dogs

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Sometimes just trying to get along with a difficult neighbor can make us prisoners in our own homes. It can lead us blacktailed11014to do things that go against our  stated intentions and interests. That seems to be the situation right now for the Thunder Basin National Grassland, a 547,000-acre protected area in northeastern Wyoming.

The U.S. Forest Service, which manages the Grassland, has announced a plan to poison an estimated 16,000 prairie dogs and dramatically shrink the already limited area in which prairie dogs are tolerated. Thunder Basin officials intend to do it despite their declared plans to improve prairie dog habitat. Their method, moreover, is likely to kill a lot of other wildlife in the affected area and, incidentally, squander taxpayer dollars for nothing.

Read more at:  Slaughter

Federal plan for Black-footed Ferrets, prairie dogs announced

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DENVER | The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has announced that their 157-page Black-footed ferret Revised NG Black Footed ferretRecovery Plan is now available.

The Black-footed ferret (Mustela nigripes) was historically found throughout the Great Plains, mountain basins, and semi-arid grasslands of North America wherever prairie dogs occurred, according to a news release from the federal agency.

The species is listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act of 1973.

Read more at:  Ferrets

Prairie dog relocation costs evoke mixed reaction

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On farms and ranches across America, prairie dogs are target practice.

In the city of Santa Fe, the furry little critters get bubble baths, leftover Big Macs and protection under an ordinance requiring their “humane relocation” if they live on property slated for commercial construction.

Even the city government, which has a statue of its patron saint in front of City Hall making eye contact with a prairie dog, is loath to hurt the burrowing rodents.

Since the ordinance passed in 2001, the city has incurred $559,000 in relocation costs, much to the chagrin of one city councilor.

Read more:  Santa Fe

Read more: Abq Journal

Swift foxes draw UNL researchers

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Prairie dogs may not be the only critters burrowed into the grasslands of western Nebraska. The swift fox also calls the area home.

The native swift fox is on the Nebraska endangered and threatened species list. For that reason, the Nebraska Department of  52aa901fc8a2e.preview-300Roads and Marc Albrecht, associate professor of biology at the University of Nebraska at Kearney, will collect data on the foxes in the spring and summer of 2014 along the corridor of the Heartland Expressway.

Read more at:  Fox

Ferrets In the Night – Recovery Efforts Continue for Masked Bandits in Montana

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The region of the American Prairie Reserve encompasses two national wildlife refuges. This is an area of Montana with dramatic cliffs cut by the Missouri River and rugged, wooded terrain housing mountain lions, elk and big horn sheep. As you move up from ferretzthe river and north across the prairie, an expansive network of ecologically important prairie dog towns come into view. With 90% of ferret diets consisting of prairie dogs, the sight and sound of these important animals is encouraging. As Damien notes below, this area is one of just a handful of critical ferret reintroduction efforts in North America.  – Sean Gerrity

 

Read more at: Ferret

Almost Humane in Valencia County

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At the 4 December 2013 Business Meeting, Valencia County Commissioners voting down a resolution, 3 to 2, opposing animal killing contests.

 

The resolution, which merely reflected the OPINION of the Commission, would have made the county the first in New Mexico to oppose animal killing contests.   The majority of the packed house spoke in favor of the resolution with very few people speaking in dissent.  Those in support frequently expressed compassion, respect for nature, and concern for public safety as compelling reasons for the resolution.  One supporter mentioned a term that seems to be growing in popularity renaming the county as “Violencia.”

 

It is unfortunate that a majority of commissioners chose an “avoid controversy” approach, but we can only hope that someday perhaps more enlightened commissioners will choose the more compassionate approach.

 

Our thanks go out to Commissioner Alicia Aguilar who initiated the Resolution, and to Charles Eaton who supported it.

 

As Ghandi said:  “The greatness of a nation can be judged by the way its animals are treated.”

Multiple Mates Worth the Risk for Female Prairie Dogs

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Dec. 4, 2013 — Mating with more than one male increases reproductive success for female prairie dogs, despite an increase in risks. This is according to a new study published in The Journal of Mammalogy by behavioral ecologist John Hoogland, Professor at the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science’s Appalachian Laboratory.

 

Read More at: Mating131204123740

Or even more at:  Science

Time Magazine: America’s Pest Problem

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I am sending this urgently to you all because this 18th century “solution” does not belong in the 21st century! I am asking EVERYONE who reads this to write to Time and challenge this guy’s assumptions, information, credentials, WHATEVER! I am APPALLED to read such a treatise for killing in this day and age!

pest problem  However, I think Non Sequitur had it nailed!  1082383_474035186026173_1534096749_o

 

You can read the time article at:  TIME

Prairie Dog Coalition Honors Con Slobodchikoff, Ph. D.

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The Prairie Dog Coalition, a program of The Humane Society of the United States, will honor those who have helped protect prairie dogs at the 9th annual “Living on Burrowed Time IX” gala on Oct. 26. This year’s event will celebrate and honor special guest Con Slobodchikoff, Ph. D. as Prairie Dog Protector of the Year.ConPortrait-1-3-06W1

Slobodchikoff, Ph. D., professor emeritus at Northern Arizona University, director of the Animal Language Institute, and president and CEO of Animal Communications, Ltd. Slobodchikoff is a world-renowned animal behaviorist who has been studying prairie dog communication for more than 30 years. Last year, he was featured on BBC and NPR for his research on animal communication and published Chasing Dr. Doolittle: Learning the Language of Animals.

Read more at:   PDC honors C. Slobodchikoff

 

Prairie Dog Facts

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  • Two of the five species of prairie dogs are protected under The Endangered Species Act. Black-tailed prairie dogs have been granted a “Warranted but Precluded” Threatened Species listing, which means that biologically they deserve protection but the government does not have the resources required for enforcement at this time.
  • Overall, prairie dogs inhabit less than 1% of their former range. New Mexico has the smallest remaining acreage of prairie dogs across their historical range. Best estimates on Gunnison’s populations are that they inhabit about 2% of their former region. This means overall numbers are dangerously low since their range is much smaller than that of the Black-tailed Prairie Dog. A surprisingly large percentage of remaining prairie dog colonies live in urban environments.
  • Black Footed FerretsPrairie dogs are known as a “keystone species.” Over 160 vertebrates alone are associated with large prairie dog colonies and over 80 on “urban” colonies. Possibly the world’s most endangered animal, the Black-footed Ferret, cannot live without prairie dogs. Some other federally protected species are nearly as dependent including the Ferruginous Hawk, the Burrowing Owl, the Swift Fox and the Mountain Plover. Biologists have termed them “perhaps the most important mammal on earth.”

Prairie dogs are important to their environment in three ways:

  • They are the primary prey on rangelands and their colonies also provide a greater density of other prey species.
  • They provide homes or shelters for dozens of species.
  • Their positive effect on soil and vegetation conditions.

 

  • Prairie dogs are annual breeders. About half of the females over two years of age will give birth to 3-5 pups in the spring. The overwhelming majority will not live six months.
  • Prairie dogs are highly social and possess the most complex language of any animal ever studied. They display different calls for raptors, coyotes, humans and even humans carrying guns. They have numerous other calls totaling over fifty distinct “words.” Kissing, hugging and grooming are regular pastimes. Burrows are much like homes possessing front and back doors, toilets, listening posts, sleeping quarters and storage rooms.
  • Poisoning prairie dogs is unacceptable. The primary poison used induces a slow, painful death that may take up to 72 hours. Other residents of their burrows suffer the same fate. Poisoning for population control is counter-productive. A mature colony left alone tends to expand about 2% per year. A poisoned colony expands at the rate of about 70% per year. Left to their own devices, prairie dogs experience their own natural population declines. They never undergo these decreases if we are constantly inducing our own, unnatural removal on their colonies.
  • Shooting definitely has a significant impact on prairie dog populations. One heavily shot area was reduced by 10,000 acres in just a couple of years. Shooting promotes disease, discourages other species from hunting or living in the colony, and is not “hunting.”

For more facts, visit 101 Questions and Answers about Prairie Dogs and Environmental Change and the Prairie Dog

About Prairie Dogs

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My goal in writing this article is to help educate people about prairie dogs, and to provide people with objective information backed by valid scientific research. As many of us in New Mexico live among prairie dogs, I feel it is especially critical that people are well educated about these native animals.

What are prairie dogs?

Prairie dogs are large, colonial, ground-nesting squirrels. They live in large communities (colonies) in grassland habitats. They are highly social animals, and have evolved a complex language system. Prairie dogs eat grasses and weeds, and they will clip grasses to enable them to detect predators. They live in family units called coteries that consist of usually one male and several females. Females often remain in the same burrow system during their lifetime and juvenile males leave the burrow during their first year. Prairie dogs usually live for about 5 years in the wild.

What species do we have in New Mexico?

Both black-tailed prairie dogs and Gunnison’s prairie dogs occur within New Mexico.

Black-tailed prairie dogs are the most social of all the prairie dog species, and occur in the Great Plains region. They used to be common in the eastern and southwestern part of New Mexico, but have been eliminated from most of their native habitat within the state.

Gunnison’s prairie dogs occur throughout the four corners region and are found in Santa Fe, Albuquerque, Socorro, Gallup, and Grants. Gunnison’s prairie dogs also have declined significantly, and have been petitioned to be listed under the endangered species list.

Prairie dog reproduction

Prairie dogs are not prolific breeders. They only have one litter per year, consisting of about four young, of which only two usually survive.

The ecological role of prairie dogs

Prairie dogs were once among the most numerous and widespread herbivores in North American grasslands. Human activities such as habitat destruction and poisoning efforts have significantly reduced prairie dog populations. Three of the five species are federally listed as threatened or endangered. The most widespread species, the black-tailed prairie dog, now occupies less than 2% of its historical range. Scientists studying prairie dogs have estimated that at least 163 animal species are associated with prairie dog colonies, indicating that the prairie dog is a “keystone” (i.e., critically important) species in these ecosystems. Prairie dogs create ecological disturbances resulting in a diverse landscape that provides a variety of habitats for many plant and animal species, including black-footed ferrets, rabbits, squirrels, lizards, snakes, burrowing owls, and invertebrates. Prairie dogs also affect grassland plant species composition and vegetation structure and enhance soil and plant nutritional quality, which benefits antelope, bison, and cattle.

Prairie dog eradication has caused significant biological degradation and decline in biological diversity on grasslands in North America. Research has found that prairie dogs inhibit woody plants from invading grasslands, and has indicated that the elimination of these rodents has played a significant role in desertification of grasslands. In addition, removal of prairie dogs causes secondary extinctions of other species, altering the entire food web associated with prairie dogs. For example, the black-footed ferret, burrowing owl, mountain plover, and ferruginous hawk are among the most endangered prairie dog-dependent species. Despite their importance, people often want to exterminate prairie dogs because of misconceptions about proliferation, children being bitten, destruction of landscaped areas, plague, competition for forage with livestock, and animals breaking their legs in the burrows.

Are they dangerous to humans?

Prairie dogs are not a threat to children. They are timid animals, and when approached by humans, prairie dogs quickly scurry into the safety of their burrows. People should never hand feed prairie dogs or try to grab them. Hand feeding may cause the animals to be accustomed to humans, and result in bites when humans get too close.

Prairie dogs and hantavirus

Prairie dogs are not known to contract or transmit hantaviruses. Worldwide, hantaviruses are associated with deer mice and other rodents in the family Muridae, which are distant relatives of prairie dogs (Squirrels, in the family Sciuridae).

Prairie dogs and plague

Prairie dogs do not carry plague. Plague is a non-native disease, introduced to North America from Europe by humans. Prairie dogs have not evolved immunity to plague, and therefore, it kills 99% of the individuals in an infected colony. Plague has been a major contributor to causing the decline in prairie dog populations.

Fleas carry the plague. These fleas can be found on many wild animals, and are not limited to prairie dogs. Killing prairie dogs just causes fleas to search for another host, and is not recommended by the Center for Disease Control (CDC) as an effective method of plague control. The key to preventing plague is to control fleas, not prairie dogs. Avoiding contact with dead wild animals and dusting pets and rodent burrows with flea powder can successfully prevent plague. Plague is also easily overcome with antibiotics when detected early, so people should educate themselves about the symptoms of plague. A colony of active prairie dogs is indicative of healthy, plague-free prairie dogs, and should not cause concern.

What if they are damaging the landscape in your yard?

If prairie dogs are causing damage to landscaped areas, you can use visual barriers such as vegetation or low walls and additional below ground barriers to contain the animals. Prairie dogs are highly discouraged by tall vegetation, so plant native shrubs and do not mow native grasses. Xeriscaping the area will also help discourage prairie dogs, and conserve water.

How to get rid of prairie dogs

Rat poison should not be used to kill prairie dogs because it causes secondary poisoning of dogs, cats, and other animals, and is dangerous to children. The only legal method for killing prairie dogs involves the use of poisonous gas by licensed professionals (in most states), which is costly. The poisonous gases used are inhumane, causing slow and painful deaths, and can take up to 72 hours to induce death in an animal. During which time the animals suffer from burning of the mucus membranes to paralysis.

The best recommendation is to learn to live with these native animals, and, if for some reason, prairie dogs must be removed, you can contact professional relocators in the state that can be referred by People for Native Ecosystems (PNE) (505) 982-0496 or the City of Santa Fe Permit Development and Review (505) 955-6480. Prairie Dog Pals of Albuquerque also conducts some relocations, though mostly on public lands.

Shooting prairie dogs

Shooting is often used as a means of reducing the size of a prairie dog colony. Varmint hunters gather together in many states where prairie dogs occur to shoot them. They do not eat the prairie dogs; rather, they shoot them with rifles for target practice fun. In our national grasslands, bullet shells and literally exploded prairie dogs can be found littering the colonies. It is important to keep in mind that that these are highly social animals that are greatly affected by the shooting of their family members. Prairie dogs have become threatened species and are not prolific breeders, so sport shooting should be banned.

Do prairie dogs compete with cattle for forage?

Recent research has found that prairie dogs compete little for forage with cattle (~5%). In fact, by clipping grasses, prairie dogs eliminate old plant tissue and stimulate new plant growth. New plant growth contains more protein, so the nutritional quality of the vegetation on prairie dog colonies is greater than off colonies, despite the lower quantity of vegetation. Cattle have been found to gain similar to more weight when foraging on prairie dog colonies than off. Keep in mind that prairie dogs and bison have coexisted for millions of years, and bison and other ungulates consistently prefer to graze on prairie dog colonies.

What about falling into prairie dog holes?

The myth that cattle fall into prairie dog holes apparently began in the late 1800’s. During this time, cattle were over-stocked on rangeland here in the Southwest. Cattle were overgrazing the lands, and combined with a 25 year drought period at the end of the century, many of the grasslands became desertified. There was little forage for cattle to eat and many became sick and lethargic, causing some of the cattle to apparently fall into the burrows. A healthy cow slowly grazes with its head down and does not fall into burrows. Remember, bison evolved along with prairie dogs.

Some people like to ride their horses in the mountains but feel they can’t because prairie dog burrows are present. My advice is not to run your horse on a prairie dog colony, and find an alternative place to ride. These animals no longer occur in large colonies due to their population declines, and therefore, it should not be difficult to find an alternative place to ride. If we live in the mountains or are recreationally enjoying them it is important to remember that wildlife are present in these areas and we need to learn how to live with them, not eliminate them because they are in our way.

Prairie dogs as pets

Prairie dogs express social behavior that humans can relate to, but they do not make good pets. Because they are highly social animals, they should never be kept in isolation. Prairie dogs require considerable attention, and also are highly active with lots of energy and desire to chew and dig. They often will chew furniture when let out of their cage and will dig at rugs, tearing them up. In addition, prairie dogs have a breeding season each year, during which their hormones change and they can become aggressive. During this time even friendly prairie dogs can bite. Moreover, most prairie dogs sold as pets are taken directly from the wild. They have not been bred in captivity for generations, unlike most animals that we have for pets. Keep in mind that dogs have been domesticated for 10,000 years. Because prairie dogs have not been domesticated, they exhibit wild tendencies and may not always be friendly to the people they live with.

Wild prairie dogs sold for pets are often collected from areas where landowners want to reduce or eliminate the prairie dog population on their land. These prairie dogs have been acquired through unregulated harvest to provide profit for the pet trade. Some of the methods used to obtain prairie dogs for pets, such as removing prairie dogs with a “sucker truck,” a truck with a vacuum hose, are inhumane. The pet trade contributes to the decline of the species. If prairie dogs must be removed or controlled in an area, the animals should be humanely relocated to appropriate areas where their populations are desired.

Current efforts to protect prairie dogs within the state

Currently there are no efforts established to protect the Gunnison’s prairie dogs. However, both the city of Albuquerque and of Santa Fe do not allow the poisoning of this species within the city limits. The US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) has determined that black-tailed prairie dogs have declined significantly throughout their range and that their status as a threatened species is “warranted but precluded.” Meaning that there are significant threats affecting the long-term viability of the black-tailed prairie dog, but there are insufficient resources to protect this species. The limited funds available to the USFWS for threatened and endangered species is currently being used for species that are of greater concern.

Game and fish departments from most states in which prairie dogs occur have established black-tailed prairie dog working groups. These working groups are designed to develop a management plan to reduce the decline of prairie dogs so that listing will not be necessary.

Why are they endangered? I see so many of them!

Often people think that because they see “lots” of prairie dogs that they couldn’t be declining. Keep in mind that they once occurred in huge numbers (~5 billion) throughout most of the grasslands in the central United States. They have declined greatly relative to their former abundance. There are many large threats affecting their populations: continued poisoning and shooting, habitat loss through development and desertification, and plague. In addition, many animal species that are dependent on the prairie dog require large colonies in order to support them. Most of the prairie dog colonies have become fragmented and isolated from one another, which lowers the long-term viability of maintaining the population and the other species dependent on them. The plight of the prairie dog is analogous to the passenger pigeon, once one of the most abundant and common species that has now become extinct due to human persecution.

How you can help

People are greatly needed to help in education, legislation, and relocation efforts. Contact a local wildlife organization such as Prairie Dog Pals or People for Native Ecosystems (contact info above) if you have an interest in helping the prairie dogs. You can also find more information about prairie dogs on the web at http://www.prairiedogs.org  and http://www.gprc.org  .

Ana D. Davidson, Ph.D.

Department of Biology

The University of New Mexico

Prairie Dog Talking Points

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  • Prairie dogs are a keystone species with up to 205 associated vertebrates (9 considered dependent) living with them, using their burrows, or predating upon them
  • There are 5 species of prairie dogs. The ones in Albuquerque are Gunnison’s, the others include Mexican, Utah, white and black tailed.
  • Gunnison’s prairie dogs hibernate during the winter months.
  • Over the last 100 years prairie dogs have been reduced to 1% of their former range and 2% of their population.
  • Some of the species are listed under the Endangered Species Act. Others are being considered for listing.
  • New Mexico has the smallest remaining acreage of prairie dogs.
  • Prairie dogs are territorial and will remain in or near their ancestral habitat if at all possible. The prairie dogs you see here in Albuquerque are the remnants of vast prairie dog towns that existed for hundreds of years.
  • Prairie dogs live an average of 3-5 years in the wild.
  • Prairie dogs are annual breeders. 50% of females over 2 years of age will breed and produce an average of 4 pups.
  • Pups are usually born in early May and will emerge from their burrows after about thirty days.
  • Prairie dogs have the most complex language of any animal ever studied.
  • They have over 200 words and can form sentences identifying intruders by color, size and type of risk.
  • Burrows are complex with a different area for each function of life. There are living chambers, sleeping and nesting rooms, a food storage area,
  • toilet rooms, and flood chambers. The burrows themselves generally include a second entrance or escape way, air chambers, and listening posts in addition to the main entrance.
  • As with humans, prairie dogs are the victims of plague. Virus carrying fleas are brought into the colony by wild animals or off leash cats or dogs.
  • As they have no immunity to the plague they will die within days.
  • Poisoning prairie dogs in both cruel and ineffective. The poison causes a slow agonizing death that may take up to three days.
  • A mature colony tends to expand at approximately 2% annually. A poisoned colony can expand at an annual rate of 70%. Additionally the poison can pose a danger to humans, cats, dogs, and other animals in the area.

Gunnison’s Prairie Dogs Facts

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Populations: The Ultimate Underdog

800px-Cynomys_ludovicianus5Gunnison’s Prairie Dogs are a White-tailed subspecies, which inhabits the four corners region. Once ubiquitous, current estimates place their populations at about 2 – 5% of their former range.

Two of the five species of prairie dogs are protected under the Endangered Species Act. There may be fewer Utah Prairie Dogs than Siberian Tigers. Black-tailed Prairie Dogs, the most numerous due their large range, are considered a Candidate for Threatened Listing. They meet all criteria for listing, but the Fish and Wildlife Service does not yet have the resources to enforce the listing, so they were placed on the Candidate List in 2000. They are on about 1% of their former range.

tipping pointEcological Importance: A ‘keystone species.’

Prairie dogs are a ‘keystone species,’ or most important element, of their environment.

Up to 160 other species benefit from their presence.

They enrich their environment in three ways:

  1. As the primary prey on rangelands.
  2. They build homes or shelter for many species.
  3. They alter vegetation and soil to promote optimum grazing conditions.

The Black-footed Ferret is the most endangered mammal on our continent and cannot live without prairie dogs under any circumstances.

The Ferruginous Hawk, Swift Fox, Mountain Plover, and Burrowing Owl, are considered  for or federally protected species that are considered dependent on prairie dogs. Several other species are considered dependent on prairie dogs. Several other species are considered dependent.

It’s a Dog’s Life: a Brief Description of the Prairie Dogs, Themselves

Prairie dogs possess, perhaps, the most complex language of any animal ever studied. Even more so than primates. They have over fifty primary ‘words’ and can communicate in sentences, distinguish color, speed, and level of threat through language.

Prairie dogs live in family units called ‘coteries’. They often ‘kiss’ in a familial identification. The animals commonly seen poised on their hindquarters are sentries, ever vigilant on the lookout for danger to themselves and families.

Prairie dogs are annual breeders. Fifty percent of females over two years of age will give birth to about 4 pups in the spring. There is tremendous juvenile mortality.

Prairie dogs live to be about five years old in the wild.

Burrows are complex, with separate ‘rooms’ for each function of life. Toilet chambers, sleeping quarters and storage typify a home burrow. Often, listening posts are created near the entrance for added protection. Some burrows have several entrances.

Gunnison’s and White-tailed Prairie Dogs hibernate, or go into torpor, as it is called, from about November through February. Black-tailed Prairie Dogs do not hibernate.