Colorado Prairie Dog Squad

Once you have your supplies and have arrived at your prairie dog town site, you are ready to begin collecting data! Simply check into your iNaturalist app and click the Observe camera button at the bottom middle of your screen. Next you will be prompted to take a photo of the prairie dogs and identify the species. Do not forget to scroll the bottom of your observation page, press Projects, and select Colorado Prairie Dog Squad to begin taking site measurements and recording your data.  Once here, you will be prompted to fill out different data points about the site including the date, time, temperature, percent cloud cover, weather, species of prairie dog, total area of town, adjacent habitat type, presence of roadways, the number of active holes, other species present at the town, invasive species presence, site recommendation, and additional observations or comments. Do not forget to hit Share when you are done!

 

Date of Observation: Record the date and time you visited the town and collected data. Most smartphones collect this information automatically when a photo is taken.

 

Temperature at Site: Record the ambient air temperature (in Farenheit) at the site during your observation.  This can be done with a thermometer or a temperature app on your phone. This measurement does not need to be exact.

 

Percent Cloud Cover: Record the amount of sky that is covered by clouds during your observation.

 

Level of Precipitation: Record the type of rain or snowfall occurring during your observation.

 

Prairie Dog Presence/Absence: Determine whether or not prairie dogs are present at this site based on a visual sighting, hearing a prairie dog vocalization, or finding fresh scat outside of a prairie dog hole. This data point will be critical as we examine these towns’ success over time.

 

Prairie Dog Species: Identify the species of prairie dogs at this town. See the Species Identification page to assist with identification. There are 3 species of prairie dog that exist in Colorado- black-tailed, white-tailed, and Gunnison’s prairie dogs. Black-tailed prairies dogs are most common on the frontrange of Colorado.

 

Area of Town: Estimate the total area of the prairie dog town in acres. An acre is roughly the size of a football field. We suggest finding a high vantage point in the landscape to get a full view of large towns. 

 

Adjacent Habitat: Identify the type of habitat next to the prairie dog town. This could be natural, a park, residential, industrial, or agricultural.

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Land Management Status: Is the land private or public? If it is fenced, there is a good chance it is privately owned. Using a mapping service such as Google Maps can help as well. 

 

Presence of Roadways: Determine the presence and type of roadways that are present near the prairie dog town. Roadways can deter prairie dog dispersal and pose a safety threat.

 

Number of Prairie Dogs Above Ground: Count the number of prairie dogs above ground. Find a vantage point where the entire town can be seen and the prairie dogs are not disturbed. Scan the town 3 times, preferably waiting 15 minutes between each scan. Record the highest count. If the weather is fair (sunny, warm, and calm), this can be a good indicator for the total population at the town. 

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Vegetation Cover: What percentage of the ground at the prairie dog town is covered by grasses, flowers, or shrubs? As opposed to soil, rocks, or debris. Only estimate vegetation cover during spring, summer, or early fall when vegetation is still green.

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Other Species Present: If you saw any other wildlife species on the prairie dog town, record them here. This will give us a general idea of other species that are present on prairie dog towns.

 

Invasive Species Present: Identify the amount of noxious weeds present in the town. Some studies have found that invasive plants occur more often on prairie dog towns. Noxious weeds common on prairie dog towns in Colorado include common mullein, curly dock, field bindweed, and cheatgrass.

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Common mullein                        Curly dock                            Field bindweed                          Cheatgrass                  

Recommendation: Think about whether you would recommend this site for friends, family, and other members of the public to visit and enjoy viewing prairie dogs.

 

Number of Active Holes: Prairie dogs are extremely meticulous animals, therefore an active prairie dog hole will have fresh scat outside and nothing blocking or covering the entrance such as debris or cobwebs. This is not a required field, but can be useful for estimating population when the weather is poor and there are few dogs above ground.

 

Additional Observations & Comments: This section is available to add any additional observations you made at this site that was not covered in the data. This could include the behavior of the prairie dogs, the accessibility of the site, and future recommendations for other Squad members at this site.