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Prairie Dog (Cynomys ludovicianus)

Prairie Dog | Photo courtesy of Theresa Bureau | Border of North Dakota | View Enlarged Photo

Master Prairie Gardner

Closely related to other rodents (especially the Woodchuck and Chipmunk,) the Prairie Dog was an important player in the prairies and grasslands that once dominated this region. Prairie Dog families built extensive burrows covering large areas. Their digging helped to keep the soil fresh and aerated, plowing the way for trees and native prairie plants. Burrowing Owls, Badgers, and snakes would use abandoned Prairie Dog Burrows as homes, and birds would eat the insects churned up by the Prairie Dogs' tunneling. Without Prairie Dogs around, our prairies may have looked more like deserts!

One of the many things that can be said for Prairie Dogs is that they are extremely hardy animals.They can go a long time without water and survive on whatever the arid land has to provide, and most often this consists of grasses, roots and wildflowers.

Unfortunately, human encroachment in the way of farms and homes had a tragic impact on the Midwest's thriving Prairie Dog population. Government-funded programs backed efforts to to poison, shoot, trap, and otherwise eradicate this native rodent and scientists believe that such efforts my have eradicated 99% of the five billion Prairie Dogs that once churned through this country's soil.

While these government programs took their toll on Prairie Dogs they racked up collateral damage on an ecosystem that depended on them, and no species had it worse than the Black-footed Ferret. The Black-footed Ferret, once the Prairie Dog's main predator, is now considered the most endangered species in the United States. It was assumed, in fact, that the species had been driven into extinction until a small population was discovered in Wyoming in 1981.

Federal and state agencies are now working alongside conservation groups and private landowners to reintroduce the Black Footed Ferret into Wyoming, South Dakota, Arizona, Colorado and Utah. In laying a solid groundwork for the continued survival of the Black-footed Ferret, progressive government programs offer compensation and incentives to farmers, ranchers and other landowners who do not molest Prairie Dog populations.

Watch "Dogs"?

Families work together to build their burrows and ensure survival. Their burrows can often span a hundred feet or more (quite a distance to a Prairie Dog,) and incorporate a nursery, a latrine, a nesting chamber lined with prairie grasses, and even watch-towers, where family members take turn poking their heads out to watch for danger. If danger is detected, one of the sentries will bark and dodge into the hole. When they perceive that the danger has passed, they will leap from the hole and give an all-clear bark. They even kiss! When family members meet each other, they will approach and touch mouths.

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	National Audubon Society's Field Guide to Mammals
	Tracking and the Art of Seeing

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