Colorado Prairie Dog Squad

Unlike their name suggests, prairie dogs are not related to "dogs" but rather are medium-sized rodents in the Squirrel family. They live across the plains of North America, munching on prairie grasses, flowers, and the occasional insect. Prairie dogs dig elaborate tunnels underground and live in large communities called "towns". The largest of these towns have been found to be over 25,000 square miles and contain up to a couple hundred million prairie dogs (Biggins et al., 2006)!

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Prairie dogs can sometimes be seen as destructive to lawns or agricultural areas because of their digging behavior, but they are also considered a keystone species in the North American prairie. This means that many other species rely directly and indirectly on this species for survival (Martinez-Estevez et al., 2013). For example,

 

• A prairie dog's digging and waste actually help aerate and fertilize the soil, helping grasses and flowers grow (Coppock et al., 1983).

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• Pronghorn, bison, and even livestock have been shown to prefer grazing near prairie dog towns, likely due to the increased nutritional value found in the plants (Johnson-Nistler et al., 2004).

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• Black-footed ferrets, golden eagles, hawks, snakes, badgers, and coyotes all rely on prairie dogs as a vital source of prey (Goguen, 2012). 

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• Several species, such as burrowing owls and black-footed ferrets, cannot dig their own tunnels and instead need abandoned prairie dog tunnels for shelter (Lomolino & Smith, 2003). 

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Prairie dog populations have diminished to about 1-2% of their historic range, and their absence has been linked to prairie degradation and desertification (Martinez-Estevez et al., 2013). Despite their importance and decline, only the Mexican and Utah species have gained threatened and endangered status respectfully under the Endangered Species Act, while the other three species of prairie dogs remain unprotected under their “warranted but precluded” status (Luce, 2003). This means that the ESA acknowledges the need for prairie dogs to be listed, but other species are being given priority. 

 

By joining this citizen science program you can help discover the extent of prairie dog populations, the barriers to their dispersal, and the range of habitat fragmentation or degradation that they can tolerate. All of this information can help increase our knowledge of prairie dog ecology and inform future management and conservation decisions. It might even get more people to care about this incredible species!

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Managing Prairie Dogs: Striking a Balance

 

At the same time, COPDS recognizes that prairie dog management requires a balance between meeting the needs of the human community with that of the ecosystem as a whole. As important as prairie dogs are to the ecosystem, they also cannot coexist with certain land management goals (i.e. irrigation, soccer fields, playgrounds, residential properties, etc.)(Lybecker et al., 2002). They also pose a minimal health risk due to the potential for plague infection to dogs, cats, and humans directly (Melman et al., 2017). Read more about plague and prairie dogs here.

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Additionally, some animals cannot coexist with prairie dog towns and require land that is not occupied by them. Ground nesting birds, for example, need thick vegetation to build their nest and hide their eggs, and therefore cannot live solely on prairie dog towns (Johnson-Nistler et al., 2004). In some cases, prairie dog presence has also been shown to decrease vegetative cover and increase the abundance of invasive weeds. This is believed to be, in due part, because prairie dogs prefer to consume native vegetation while avoiding alien weeds (ESCO, 2008). Very little is understood about the urban area's impact on the prairie dog's ability to function as a keystone species. There is some evidence that such heavily fragmented landscapes confine prairie dogs to habitats too small to accommodate their ecological role.

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COPDS supports management strategies that prevent the colonization of prairie dogs to these sensitive areas and believes that such efforts can actually reduce human-prairie dog conflicts and prevent anti-prairie dog sentiments in the community. The ultimate goal of COPDS is to prioritize the proper function of the prairie ecosystem in order to maximize biodiversity, which may in some cases come at the price of some individual prairie dog welfare.