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'{{short description|Genus of ground squirrels}} {{About|the animal}} {{Use dmy dates|date=November 2013}} {{Automatic Taxobox | name = Prairie dog | fossil_range = Late [[Pliocene]]-[[Holocene]] | image = Black-Tailed Prairie Dog.jpg | image_caption = Black-tailed prairie dog at the [[Smithsonian National Zoo Park]] in [[Washington, D.C.]] | taxon = Cynomys | authority = [[Constantine Samuel Rafinesque|Rafinesque]], 1817 | type_species = ''[[Black-tailed prairie dog|Cynomys socialis]]''<ref>{{MSW3|id=12400909}}</ref> | subdivision_ranks = Species | subdivision = ''[[Gunnison's prairie dog|Cynomys gunnisoni]]''<br /> ''[[White-tailed prairie dog|Cynomys leucurus]]''<br /> ''[[Black-tailed prairie dog|Cynomys ludovicianus]]''<br /> ''[[Mexican prairie dog|Cynomys mexicanus]]''<br /> ''[[Utah prairie dog|Cynomys parvidens]]'' }} '''Prairie dogs''' (genus '''''Cynomys''''') are [[herbivorous]] [[Burrow|burrowing]] [[Marmotini | ground squirrel]]s native to the [[grassland]]s of [[North America]]. Within the genus are five species: [[black-tailed prairie dog|black-tailed]], [[white-tailed prairie dog|white-tailed]], [[Gunnison's prairie dog|Gunnison's]], [[Utah prairie dog|Utah]], and [[Mexican prairie dog]]s.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://defenders.org/prairie-dog/basic-facts|title=Basic Facts About Prairie Dogs|date=2012-03-15|website=Defenders of Wildlife|language=en|access-date=2019-02-18}}</ref> In Mexico, prairie dogs are found primarily in the northern states, which lie at the southern end of the [[Great Plains]]: northeastern [[Sonora]], north and northeastern [[Chihuahua (state)|Chihuahua]], northern [[Coahuila]], northern [[Nuevo León]], and northern [[Tamaulipas]]. In the United States, they range primarily to the west of the [[Mississippi River]], though they have also been introduced in a few eastern locales. They are also found in the [[Canadian Prairies]]. Despite the name, they are not actually [[Canidae|canines]]; prairie dogs, along with the [[marmot]]s, [[chipmunk]]s, and several other [[Basal (phylogenetics)|basal]] genera belong to the [[ground squirrel]]s ([[Tribe (biology)|tribe]] ''Marmotini''), part of the larger [[squirrel]] [[Family (biology)|family]] (''Sciuridae''). Prairie dogs are considered a [[keystone species]] with their mounds often being used by other species. Their mound-building encourages grass development and renewal of [[topsoil]], with rich [[mineral]], and [[nutrient]] renewal in the soil which can be crucial for soil quality and agriculture. They are extremely important in the [[food chain]], being important to the diet of many animals such as the [[black-footed ferret]], [[swift fox]], [[golden eagle]], [[red tailed hawk]], [[American badger]], and [[coyote]]. Other species, such as the [[golden-mantled ground squirrel]], [[mountain plover]], and the [[burrowing owl]], also rely on prairie dog burrows for nesting areas. Grazing species, such as [[plains bison]], [[pronghorn]], and [[mule deer]] have shown a proclivity for grazing on the same land used by prairie dogs. Prairie dogs have some of the most complex systems of [[communication]] and social structures in the [[Phylum|animal kingdom]].<ref>{{Cite journal|url=http://www.jstor.org/stable/2424208|title=Observations on the Biology of Gunnison's Prairie Dog in Central Colorado|author1=Fitzgerald, James P.|author2=Lechleitner, Robert R.|year=1974|journal=The American Midland Naturalist|volume=92|issue=1|pages=146–163|via=JSTOR|doi=10.2307/2424208|jstor=2424208}}</ref> The prairie dog [[habitat]] has been affected by direct removal by farmers, as well as the more obvious encroachment of urban development, which has greatly reduced their populations. The removal of prairie dogs "causes undesirable spread of brush", the costs of which to livestock range and [[soil quality]] often outweighs the benefits of removal. Other threats include [[disease]]. The prairie dog is [[Protected area|protected]] in many areas to maintain local populations and ensure natural [[ecosystems]] and that they are not harmed. ==Etymology== [[File:Prairie Dog Washington DC 1.jpg|thumb|right|Prairie dogs raise their heads from their burrows in response to disturbances.]] Prairie dogs are named for their habitat and warning call, which sounds similar to a dog's bark. The name was in use at least as early as 1774.<ref>[http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=prairie ''prairie'']. Online Etymology Dictionary</ref> The 1804 journals of the [[Lewis and Clark Expedition]] note that in September 1804, they "discovered a Village of an animal the French Call the Prairie Dog".<ref name="sept7">{{cite web |url=http://libtextcenter.unl.edu/examples/servlet/transform/tamino/Library/lewisandclarkjournals?&_xmlsrc=http://libtextcenter.unl.edu/lewisandclark/files/xml/1804-09-07.xml&_xslsrc=http://libtextcenter.unl.edu/lewisandclark/LCstyles.xsl |title=Journals of the Lewis and Clark expedition, "7th September Friday 1804. a verry Cold morning" |publisher=Libtextcenter.unl.edu |access-date=2009-02-09 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090201055321/http://libtextcenter.unl.edu/examples/servlet/transform/tamino/Library/lewisandclarkjournals?&_xmlsrc=http%3A%2F%2Flibtextcenter.unl.edu%2Flewisandclark%2Ffiles%2Fxml%2F1804-09-07.xml&_xslsrc=http%3A%2F%2Flibtextcenter.unl.edu%2Flewisandclark%2FLCstyles.xsl |archive-date=1 February 2009 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> Its genus, ''Cynomys'', derives from the [[Greek language|Greek]] for "dog mouse" (κυων ''kuōn'', κυνος ''kunos'' – dog; μυς ''mus'', μυός ''muos'' – mouse).<ref>{{cite journal | last=Palmer| first=T.S. | title= Index Generum Mammalium: a List of the Genera and Families of Mammals|url = https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/88553#page/220/mode/1up| year=1904 |journal=North American Fauna | volume=23| pages=212| doi=10.3996/nafa.23.0001 | doi-access=free}}</ref> ==Classification and first identification== The black-tailed prairie dog (''Cynomys ludovicianus'') was first described by Lewis and Clark in 1804.<ref name="sept7" /> Lewis described it in more detail in 1806, calling it the "barking squirrel".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://libtextcenter.unl.edu/examples/servlet/transform/tamino/Library/lewisandclarkjournals?&_xmlsrc=http://libtextcenter.unl.edu/lewisandclark/files/xml/1806-07-01.xml&_xslsrc=http://libtextcenter.unl.edu/lewisandclark/LCstyles.xsl#n36070116 |title=Journal of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, Tuesday July 1st 1806 |publisher=Libtextcenter.unl.edu |access-date=2009-02-09 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090201055327/http://libtextcenter.unl.edu/examples/servlet/transform/tamino/Library/lewisandclarkjournals?&_xmlsrc=http%3A%2F%2Flibtextcenter.unl.edu%2Flewisandclark%2Ffiles%2Fxml%2F1806-07-01.xml&_xslsrc=http%3A%2F%2Flibtextcenter.unl.edu%2Flewisandclark%2FLCstyles.xsl#n36070116 |archive-date=1 February 2009 |url-status=dead |df=dmy-all }}</ref> * '''Order [[Rodent]]ia''' * '''Suborder [[Sciuromorpha]]''' ** '''Family [[Sciuridae]]''' ([[squirrel]]s, [[chipmunk]]s, [[marmot]]s, and prairie dogs)<ref>{{Cite web | author= Basic Biology | date= 2015 | title= Rodents | url= https://basicbiology.net/animal/mammals/rodents}}</ref> *** '''Subfamily [[Xerinae]]''' **** '''Genus ''Cynomys''''' ***** [[Gunnison's prairie dog]], ''Cynomys gunnisoni'' ***** [[White-tailed prairie dog]], ''Cynomys leucurus'' ***** [[Black-tailed prairie dog]], ''Cynomys ludovicianus'' ***** [[Mexican prairie dog]], ''Cynomys mexicanus'' ***** [[Utah prairie dog]], ''Cynomys parvidens'' **** About 14 other genera in subfamily ===Extant species=== {| class="wikitable" |- ! Image !! Common name !! Scientific name !! Distribution |- |[[File:Cynomys gunnisoni Attilly.jpg|120px]] || [[Gunnison's prairie dog]]|| ''Cynomys gunnisoni''||Utah, Colorado, Arizona and New Mexico |- |[[File:White-Tailed Prairie Dog on Seedskadee NWR (24943085663).jpg|120px]] || [[White-tailed prairie dog]]|| ''Cynomys leucurus''|| Western Wyoming and western Colorado with small areas in eastern Utah and southern Montana. |- |[[File:Präriehund.jpg|120px]] || [[Black-tailed prairie dog]]|| ''Cynomys ludovicianus''|| Saskatchewan, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming, Colorado, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, Arizona, and New Mexico. |- |[[File:Mexican prairie dog.jpg|120px]] || [[Mexican prairie dog]]|| ''Cynomys mexicanus''||Coahuila, Nuevo León, and San Luis Potosí |- |[[File:Cynomys parvidens (29259482624).jpg|120px]] || [[Utah prairie dog]]|| ''Cynomys parvidens''|| Utah |- |} ==Description== [[File:Cynomys ludovicianus -Paignton Zoo, Devon, England-8a.jpg|thumb|right|Full view of a prairie dog]] On average, these stout-bodied rodents will grow to be between {{convert|30|and|40|cm|in|abbr=on}} long, including the short tail, and weigh between {{convert|0.5|and|1.5|kg|lb|sigfig=1}}. [[Sexual dimorphism]] in body mass in the prairie dog varies 105 to 136% between the sexes.<ref name="Hoogland 2002"/> Among the species, black-tailed prairie dogs tend to be the least sexually dimorphic, and white-tailed prairie dogs tend to be the most sexually dimorphic. Sexual dimorphism peaks during weaning, when the females lose weight and the males start eating more, and is at its lowest when the females are pregnant, which is also when the males are tired from breeding. ==Ecology and behavior== ===Diet=== Prairie dogs are chiefly [[herbivore|herbivorous]], though they eat some [[insect]]s. They feed primarily on grasses and small seeds. In the fall, they eat [[flowering plant|broadleaf]] [[forb]]s. In the winter, lactating and pregnant females supplement their diets with snow for extra water.<ref name="Long 2002">Long, K. (2002) ''Prairie Dogs: A Wildlife Handbook'', Boulder, CO: Johnson Books.</ref> They also will eat roots, seeds, fruit, buds, and grasses of various species. Black-tailed prairie dogs in [[South Dakota]] eat western bluegrass, [[blue grama]], [[Bouteloua dactyloides|buffalo grass]], [[Vulpia octoflora|six weeks fescue]], and [[tumblegrass]],<ref name="Long 2002"/> while Gunnison’s prairie dogs eat [[rabbit brush]], [[tumbleweed]]s, [[dandelions]], [[saltbush]], and [[cacti]] in addition to buffalo grass and blue grama. White-tailed prairie dogs have been observed to kill ground squirrels, a competing herbivore.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Hoogland|first1=John L.|last2=Brown|first2=Charles R.|title=Prairie dogs increase fitness by killing interspecific competitors|journal=Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences|date=23 March 2016|doi=10.1098/rspb.2016.0144|volume=283|issue=1827|pmid=27009223|pmc=4822469|page=20160144}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last1=Irwin|first1=Aisling|title=Cute prairie dogs are serial killers savaging ground squirrels|url=https://www.newscientist.com/article/2081957-cute-prairie-dogs-are-serial-killers-savaging-ground-squirrels/|access-date=26 March 2016|work=[[New Scientist]]|date=23 March 2016}}</ref> ===Habitat and burrowing=== [[File:Cynomys ludovicianus 2.jpg|thumb|250px|right|Prairie dogs at a burrow entrance]] Prairie dogs live mainly at altitudes ranging from 2,000 to 10,000&nbsp;ft above sea level.<ref name="Chance 1976">Chance, G.E. (1976). "Wonders of Prairie Dogs", New York, NY: Dodd, Mead, and Company.</ref> The areas where they live can get as warm as {{convert|38|°C|abbr=on}} in the summer and as cold as {{convert|-37|°C|abbr=on}} in the winter.<ref name="Chance 1976"/> As prairie dogs live in areas prone to environmental threats, including hailstorms, blizzards, and floods, as well as drought and prairie fires, burrows provide important protection. Burrows help prairie dogs control their body temperature ([[thermoregulation]]) as they are {{convert|5|–|10|°C|abbr=on}} during the winter and {{convert|15|–|25|°C|abbr=on}} in the summer. Prairie dog tunnel systems channel rainwater into the [[water table]] which prevents [[surface runoff|runoff]] and [[erosion]], and can also change the composition of the soil in a region by reversing soil compaction that can result from cattle grazing. Prairie dog burrows are {{convert|5|–|10|m|ft|abbr=on}} long and {{convert|2|–|3|m|ft|abbr=on}} below the ground.<ref name="Hoogland 1995"/> The entrance holes are generally {{convert|10|–|30|cm|in|abbr=on}} in diameter.<ref name="Hoogland 1995">Hoogland, J.L. (1995) [https://books.google.com/books?id=BJzzQXkka54C&printsec=frontcover ''The Black- tailed Prairie Dog: Social Life of a Burrowing Mammal''], Chicago, IL: The University of Chicago Press.</ref> Prairie dog burrows can have up to six entrances. Sometimes the entrances are simply flat holes in the ground, while at other times they are surrounded by mounds of soil either left as piles or hard packed.<ref name="Hoogland 1995"/> Some mounds, known as dome craters, can be as high as {{convert|20|–|30|cm|in|abbr=on}} high. Other mounds, known as rim craters, can be as high as {{convert|1|m|abbr=on}}.<ref name="Hoogland 1995"/> Dome craters and rim craters serve as observation posts used by the animals to watch for predators. They also protect the burrows from flooding. The holes also possibly provide ventilation as the air enters through the dome crater and leaves through the rim crater, causing a breeze though the burrow.<ref name="Hoogland 1995"/> Prairie dog burrows contain chambers to provide certain functions. They have nursery chambers for their young, chambers for night, and chambers for the winter. They also contain air chambers that may function to protect the burrow from flooding<ref name="Chance 1976"/> and a listening post for predators. When hiding from predators, prairie dogs use less-deep chambers that are usually {{convert|1|meter|spell=in}} below the surface.<ref name="Hoogland 1995"/> Nursery chambers tend to be deeper, being {{convert|2|to|3| meters|spell=in}} below the surface.<ref name="Hoogland 1995"/> ===Social organization and spacing=== [[File:Társas prérikutya 4.jpg|thumb|250px|right|Prairie dog family]] [[Ethology|Highly social]], prairie dogs live in large colonies or "towns" and collections of prairie dog families that can span hundreds of acres. The prairie dog family groups are the most basic units of its society.<ref name="Hoogland 1995"/> Members of a family group inhabit the same territory.<ref name="Hoogland 2002"/> Family groups of black-tailed and Mexican prairie dogs are called "coteries", while "clans" is used to describe family groups of white-tailed, Gunnison’s, and Utah prairie dogs.<ref name="Hoogland 2002"/> Although these two family groups are similar, coteries tend to be more closely knit than clans.<ref name="Haynie 2002"/> Members of a family group interact through oral contact or "kissing" and grooming one another.<ref name="Chance 1976"/><ref name="Hoogland 1995"/> They do not perform these behaviors with prairie dogs from other family groups.<ref name="Hoogland 1995"/> [[File:Kissing Prairie dog edit 3.jpg|thumb|left|A pair of prairie dogs]] A prairie dog town may contain 15–26 family groups.<ref name="Hoogland 1995"/> There may also be subgroups within a town, called "wards", which are separated by a physical barrier. Family groups exist within these wards. Most prairie dog family groups are made up of one adult breeding male, two to three adult females and one to two male offspring and one to two female offspring. Females remain in their natal groups for life and are thus the source of stability in the groups.<ref name="Hoogland 1995"/> Males leave their natal groups when they mature to find another family group to defend and breed in. Some family groups contain more breeding females than one male can control, so have more than one breeding adult male in them. Among these multiple-male groups, some may contain males that have friendly relationships, but the majority contain males that have largely antagonistic relationships. In the former, the males tend to be related, while in the latter, they tend not to be related. Two to three groups of females may be controlled by one male. However, among these female groups, there are no friendly relations.<ref name="Hoogland 1995"/> [[File:Prairie dog at the zoo.jpg|thumb|A prairie dog at a zoo.]] The average prairie dog territory takes up {{convert|0.05|–|1.01| hectare}}. Territories have well-established borders that coincide with physical barriers such as rocks and trees.<ref name="Hoogland 1995"/> The resident male of a territory defends it and antagonistic behavior will occur between two males of different families to defend their territories. These interactions may happen 20 times per day and last five minutes. When two prairie dogs encounter each other at the edges of their territories, they will start staring, make bluff charges, flare their tails, chatter their teeth, and sniff each other's perianal scent glands. When fighting, prairie dogs will bite, kick and ram each other.<ref name="Hoogland 1995"/> If their competitor is around their size or smaller, the females will participate in fighting. Otherwise, if a competitor is sighted, the females signal for the resident male. ===Reproduction and parenting=== [[File:Präriehund P1010308.JPG|thumb|250px|right|Female with juvenile]] Prairie dog copulation occurs in the burrows, and this reduces the risk of interruption by a competing male. They are also at less risk of predation. Behaviors that signal that a female is in [[estrus]] include underground consorting, self-licking of genitals, dust-bathing, and late entrances into the burrow at night.<ref name="Hoogland 1998"/> The licking of genitals may protect against sexually transmitted diseases and genital infections,<ref name="Hoogland 1998"/> while dust-bathing may protect against fleas and other parasites. Prairie dogs also have a [[mating call]] which consists of a set of 2 to 25 barks with a 3- to 15-second pause between each one.<ref name="Hoogland 1998"/> Females may try to increase their reproduction success by mating with males outside their family groups. When copulation is over, the male is no longer interested in the female sexually, but will prevent other males from mating with her by inserting [[Mating plug|copulatory plugs]].<ref name="Hoogland 1998"/> [[File:Juvenile black-tailed prairie dogs.jpg|thumb|250px|left|Juvenile prairie dogs]] For black-tailed prairie dogs, the resident male of the family group fathers all the offspring.<ref name=r1/> Multiple paternity in litters seems to be more common in Utah and Gunnison’s prairie dogs.<ref name="Haynie 2002"/> Mother prairie dogs do most of the care for the young. In addition to nursing the young, the mother also defends the nursery chamber and collects grass for the nest. Males play their part by defending the territories and maintaining the burrows.<ref name="Hoogland 1995"/> The young spend their first six weeks below the ground being nursed.<ref name="Chance 1976"/> They are then weaned and begin to surface from the burrow. By five months, they are fully grown.<ref name="Chance 1976"/> The subject of cooperative breeding in prairie dogs has been debated among biologists. Some argue prairie dogs will defend and feed young that are not theirs,<ref name=r2/> and it seems young will sleep in a nursery chamber with other mothers; since most nursing occurs at night, this may be a case of communal nursing.<ref name="Hoogland 1995"/> In the case of the latter, others suggest communal nursing occurs only when mothers mistake another female's young for their own. [[Infanticide (zoology)|Infanticide]] is known to occur in prairie dogs. Males which take over a family group will kill the offspring of the previous male.<ref name="Hoogland 1995"/> This causes the mother to go into estrus sooner.<ref name="Hoogland 1995"/> However, most infanticide is done by close relatives.<ref name="Hoogland 1995"/> Lactating females will kill the offspring of a related female both to decrease competition for the female’s offspring and for increased foraging area due to a decrease in territorial defense by the victimized mother. Supporters of the theory that prairie dogs are communal breeders state that another reason for this type of infanticide is so that the female can get a possible helper. With their own offspring gone, the victimized mother may help raise the young of other females. ===Anti-predator calls=== [[File:PDogBark.jpg|thumb|250px|right|Prairie dog calling]] The prairie dog is well adapted to [[predation|predators]]. Using its [[Dichromacy|dichromatic]] color vision, it can detect predators from a great distance; it then alerts other prairie dogs of the danger with a special, high-pitched call. [[Con Slobodchikoff|Constantine Slobodchikoff]] and others assert that prairie dogs use a sophisticated system of vocal communication to describe specific predators.<ref name="Slobodchikoff 2002">[https://stoppestinfo.com/images/PDF/SlobodchikoffCognition2002.pdf Slobodchikoff, C. N. (2002) "Cognition and Communication in Prairie Dogs"], In: ''The Cognitive Animal'' (pp. 257–264), M. Beckoff, C. Allen, and G. M. Burghardt (eds) Cambridge: A Bradford Book.</ref> According to them, prairie dog calls contain specific information as to what the predator is, how big it is and how fast it is approaching. These have been described as a form of grammar. According to Slobodchikoff, these calls, with their individuality in response to a specific predator, imply that prairie dogs have highly developed cognitive abilities.<ref name="Slobodchikoff 2002"/> He also writes that prairie dogs have calls for things that are not predators to them. This is cited as evidence that the animals have a very descriptive language and have calls for any potential threat.<ref name="Slobodchikoff 2002"/> Alarm response behavior varies according to the type of predator announced. If the alarm indicates a hawk diving toward the colony, all the prairie dogs in its flight path dive into their holes, while those outside the flight path stand and watch. If the alarm is for a human, all members of the colony immediately rush inside the burrows. For coyotes, the prairie dogs move to the entrance of a burrow and stand outside the entrance, observing the coyote, while those prairie dogs that were inside the burrows will come out to stand and watch as well.<ref>[https://stoppestinfo.com/images/PDF/SlobodchikoffCognition2002.pdf "Cognition and Communication in Prairie Dogs"], C.N Slobodchikoff</ref> For domestic dogs, the response is to observe, standing in place where they were when the alarm was sounded, again with the underground prairie dogs emerging to watch.<ref name="Slobodchikoff 2002"/>[[File:Prairie Dog Washington Zoo.JPG|thumb|left|A black-tailed prairie dog forages above ground for grasses and leaves.]]There is debate over whether the alarm calling of prairie dogs is selfish or altruistic. It is possible that prairie dogs alert others to the presence of a predator so they can protect themselves. However, it is also possible that the calls are meant to cause confusion and panic in the groups and cause the others to be more conspicuous to the predator than the caller. Studies of black-tailed prairie dogs suggest that alarm-calling is a form of kin selection, as a prairie dog’s call alerts both offspring and nondescended kin, such as cousins, nephews and nieces.<ref name="Hoogland 1995" /> Prairie dogs with kin close by called more often than those that did not have kin nearby. In addition, the caller may be trying to make itself more noticeable to the predator.<ref name="Hoogland 1995" /> Predators, though, seem to have difficulty determining which prairie dog is making the call due to its "[[Ventriloquism|ventriloquistic]]" nature.<ref name="Hoogland 1995" /> Perhaps the most striking of prairie dog communications is the territorial call or "jump-yip" display of the black-tailed prairie dog.<ref>{{cite book|author1=C. N. Slobodchikoff |author2=Bianca S. Perla |author3=Jennifer L. Verdolin |title=Prairie Dogs: Communication and Community in an Animal Society |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sX3PmE_MbDAC&pg=PA249 |year=2009 |publisher=Harvard University Press |isbn=978-0-674-03181-4 |pages=249–}}</ref> A black-tailed prairie dog will stretch the length of its body vertically and throw its forefeet into the air while making a call. A jump-yip from one prairie dog causes others nearby to do the same.<ref name="r3" /> ==Conservation status== [[File:Prairie dog and hole.JPG|thumb|A prairie dog and his hole]] [[Ecology|Ecologists]] consider this rodent to be a [[keystone species]]. They are an important prey species, being the primary diet in prairie species such as the [[black-footed ferret]], [[swift fox]], [[golden eagle]], [[red tailed hawk]], [[American badger]], [[coyote]] and [[ferruginous hawk]]. Other species, such as the [[golden-mantled ground squirrel]], [[mountain plover]], and the [[burrowing owl]], also rely on prairie dog burrows for nesting areas. Even grazing species, such as [[plains bison]], [[pronghorn]], and [[mule deer]] have shown a proclivity for grazing on the same land used by prairie dogs.<ref>[http://www.prairiedogcoalition.org/pd-associated-species.php Associated Species] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131110163932/http://www.prairiedogcoalition.org/pd-associated-species.php |date=10 November 2013 }}. Prairie Dog Coalition. Retrieved on 2013-01-04.</ref> Nevertheless, prairie dogs are often identified as [[pest (organism)|pests]] and exterminated from agricultural properties because they are capable of damaging crops, as they clear the immediate area around their burrows of most vegetation.<ref name="slobod1991">{{Cite journal | doi = 10.1016/S0003-3472(05)80117-4 | last1=Slobodchikoff |first1=C. N. |first2=Judith |last2=Kiriazis |first3=C. |last3=Fischer |first4=E. |last4=Creef | year = 1991 | title = Semantic information distinguishing individual predators in the alarm calls of Gunnison's prairie dogs | url = http://jan.ucc.nau.edu/~cns3/SlobodchikoffSemantics1991.pdf | journal = Animal Behaviour | volume = 42 | issue = 5| pages = 713–719 | s2cid=53174059 }}</ref> [[File:Black-footed ferret skeleton.jpg|thumb|Skeleton of a black-footed ferret ([[Black-footed ferret|Mustela nigripes]]) with a prairie dog skeleton, articulated to show the [[Predation|predator-prey]] relationship between them. ([[Museum of Osteology]])]] As a result, prairie dog [[habitat]] has been affected by direct removal by farmers, as well as the more obvious encroachment of urban development, which has greatly reduced their populations. The removal of prairie dogs "causes undesirable spread of brush", the costs of which to livestock range may outweigh the benefits of removal.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.nsrl.ttu.edu/tmot1/cynoludo.htm | title=Mammals of Texas: Black-tailed Prairie Dog | access-date=18 April 2006}}</ref> Black-tailed prairie dogs comprise the largest remaining community.<ref>{{cite conference |url=https://www.fs.fed.us/rm/pubs_rm/rm_gtr298.pdf#page=25 |last1=Mulhern |first1=Daniel W. |last2=Knowles |first2=Craig J. |title=Black-tailed prairie dog status and future conservation planning |editor1-last=Uresk |editor1-first=Daniel W. |editor2-last=Schenbeck |editor2-first=Greg L. |editor3-last=O'Rourke |editor3-first=James T. |book-title=Conserving biodiversity on native rangelands: symposium proceedings |date=17 August 1995 |id=Gen. Tech. Rep. RM-GTR-298. |location=Fort Collins, CO |publisher=U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Forest and Range Experiment Station |pages=19–29 |access-date= 6 January 2017}}</ref> In spite of human encroachment, prairie dogs have adapted, continuing to dig burrows in open areas of [[Western United States|western]] cities.<ref>{{cite web|title=Public, mayor react to prairie dog poisoning at Elmer Thomas Park|url=http://www.kswo.com/Global/story.asp?S=6165243|publisher=KSWO Lawton|access-date=25 March 2012}}</ref> One common concern which led to the widespread extermination of prairie dog colonies was that their digging activities could injure horses<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.kansasheritage.org/kssights/home/diary.htm |title=The Diary of Virginia D. (Jones-Harlan) Barr b. 1866 |publisher=Kansasheritage.org |date=22 May 1940 |access-date=9 February 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090131200111/http://www.kansasheritage.org/kssights/home/diary.htm |archive-date=31 January 2009 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> by fracturing their limbs. However, according to writer Fred Durso, Jr., of ''E Magazine'', "after years of asking ranchers this question, we have found not one example."<ref>{{cite journal|title=Open Season on "Varmints" For Saving Endangered Prairie Dogs, It's the Eleventh Hour|last1=Motavalli |first1=Jim |last2=Durso |first2=Fred, Jr. |journal=E–The Environmental Magazine|date=2 July 2004 |volume=15|issue= 4 |url=https://emagazine.com/open-season-on-varmints/}}</ref> Another concern is their susceptibility to [[bubonic plague]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.desertusa.com/dec96/du_pdogs.html |title=Prairie Dogs |publisher=DesertUSA |access-date=9 February 2009}}</ref> {{as of| July 2016}} the [[U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service]] plans to distribute an oral vaccine it had developed by unmanned aircraft or drones.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.fws.gov/uploadedFiles/UAS_2016_EA_final.pdf | title=Use of Unmanned Aerial Systems to Deliver Prairie Dog Sylvatic Plague Vaccination | publisher=U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | work=Environmental Assessment | date=31 March 2016 | access-date=18 July 2016 | first1=Matthew |last1=McCollister |first2=Randy|last2= Matchett | pages=9}}</ref> ==In captivity== {{Multiple images |direction = vertical |width = 220 |image1 =Prairie_dogs_nest.jpg |caption1 = Prairie dogs are gaining popularity as zoo animals. |image2 = PrairieDogs.theora.ogv |caption2 = South-central Wisconsin, U.S. |image3 = Prairie dog on a leash.jpg |caption3 = Pet prairie dogs can be leash trained }} Until 2003, primarily black-tailed prairie dogs were collected from the wild for the exotic pet trade in Canada, the United States, Japan, and Europe. They were removed from their burrows each spring, as young pups, with a large vacuum device.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.cnn.com/EARTH/9612/16/sucking.dogs/|date=16 December 1996 | title=CNN: What's that giant sucking sound on prairie? | access-date=10 October 2009}}</ref> They can be difficult to breed in captivity,<ref name=r4/> but breed well in zoos. Removing them from the wild was a far more common method of supplying the market demand.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kPFW95tjKpQC&q=Prairie+dog+removal+from+wild+for+market+demand&pg=PA149|title=Behavior of Exotic Pets|last=Tynes|first=Valarie V.|date=2010-09-07|publisher=John Wiley & Sons|isbn=9780813800783|language=en}}</ref> They can be difficult pets to care for, requiring regular attention and a very specific diet of grasses and hay. Each year, they go into a period called [[Estrous cycle|rut]] that can last for several months, in which their personalities can drastically change, often becoming defensive or even aggressive. Despite their needs, prairie dogs are very social animals and come to seem as though they treat humans as members of their colony. In mid-2003, due to cross-contamination at a [[Madison, Wisconsin|Madison]], [[Wisconsin]]-area pet swap from an [[quarantine|unquarantined]] [[Gambian pouched rat]] imported from [[Ghana]], several prairie dogs in captivity acquired [[monkeypox]], and subsequently a few humans were also infected. This led the [[Centers for Disease Control and Prevention|CDC]] and [[Food and Drug Administration|FDA]] to issue a joint order banning the sale, trade, and transport within the United States of prairie dogs (with a few exceptions).<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/monkeypox/qa.htm |title=CDC: Questions & Answers About Monkey Pox |access-date=18 April 2006}}</ref> The disease was never introduced to any wild populations. The [[European Union]] also banned importation of prairie dogs in response.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bornfree.org.uk/zoocheck/zcnews34.htm |title=Born Free: EU bans rodent imports following monkeypox outbreak |publisher=bornfree.org.uk |date=June 2003 |access-date=13 October 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060501182711/http://www.bornfree.org.uk/zoocheck/zcnews34.htm |archive-date=1 May 2006}}</ref> All ''Cynomys'' species are classed as a "prohibited new organism" under New Zealand's [[Hazardous Substances and New Organisms Act 1996]], preventing it from being imported into the country.<ref>{{citation| url=http://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1996/0030/latest/DLM386556.html#DLM386556|title=Hazardous Substances and New Organisms Act 2003 – Schedule 2 Prohibited new organisms|publisher=New Zealand Government |access-date=26 January 2012}}</ref> Prairie dogs are also very susceptible to [[bubonic plague]], and many wild colonies have been wiped out by it.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.fws.gov/mountain-prairie/species/mammals/btprairiedog/plague.htm |title=Plague and Black-Tailed Prairie Dogs|date=23 March 1999|work=U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://campusapps.fullerton.edu/news/research/2004/stapp.html |work=California State University |title=Biologist Studies Plague and Prairie Dogs |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080210193705/http://campusapps.fullerton.edu/news/research/2004/stapp.html |archive-date=10 February 2008 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/04/18/science/18ferr.html?_r=1&oref=slogin |title=Endangered, Rescued, Now in Trouble Again |work=The New York Times |first=Jim |last=Robbins |date=18 April 2006 |access-date=22 May 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Hoogland |first=John L. |title=The Black-Tailed Prairie Dog: Social Life of a Burrowing Mammal |year=1995 |publisher=University of Chicago Press |isbn=0-226-35117-3 |page=80}}</ref> Also, in 2002, a large group of prairie dogs in captivity in [[Texas]] were found to have contracted [[tularemia]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.avma.org/onlnews/javma/oct02/021001g.asp |title=AVMA: Tularemia Outbreak Identified In Pet Prairie Dogs |access-date=18 April 2006 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060402234656/http://avma.org/onlnews/javma/oct02/021001g.asp |archive-date=2 April 2006 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> The prairie dog ban is frequently cited by the CDC as a successful response to the threat of [[zoonosis]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.cdc.gov/poxvirus/monkeypox/outbreak.html |title=Monkeypox-Outbreak: How was the outbreak contained? |access-date= 6 January 2017}}</ref> Prairie dogs that were in captivity at the time of the ban in 2003 were allowed to be kept under a [[grandfather clause]], but were not to be bought, traded, or sold, and transport was permitted only to and from a [[veterinarian]] under quarantine procedures.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2003/06/18/03-15423/control-of-communicable-diseases |title=CDC: Notice of Embargo… of certain rodents and Prairie dogs issued 06/18/2003 |date=18 June 2003 |access-date= 6 January 2017}}</ref> On 8 September 2008, the FDA and CDC rescinded the ban, making it once again legal to capture, sell, and transport prairie dogs.<ref>[http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2008/pdf/E8-20779.pdf Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 174] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120225051702/http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2008/pdf/E8-20779.pdf |date=25 February 2012 }}. (PDF) . Retrieved on 2013-01-04.</ref> Although the federal ban has been lifted, several states still have in place their own ban on prairie dogs.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bornfreeusa.org/b4a2_exotic_animals_summary.php |title=Born Free: Summary of State Laws Relating to Private Possession of Exotic Animals |access-date= 6 January 2017}}</ref> The [[European Union]] has not lifted its ban on imports from the U.S. of animals captured in the wild. Major European Prairie Dog Associations, such as the Italian ''Associazione Italiana Cani della Prateria'' (AICDP), remain against import from the United States, due to the high death rate of wild captures.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mondocdp.it|title=Untitled Document|website=www.mondocdp.it}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.canedellaprateria.it|title=Cane della prateria|website=www.canedellaprateria.it}}</ref> Several zoos in Europe have stable prairie dog colonies that generate enough surplus pups to saturate the EU internal demand, and several associations help owners to give adoption to captive-born animals.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.adoptapet.com/s/prairie-dog-adoption |title=Adoptapet.com: Prairie Dogs |access-date= 6 January 2017}}</ref> Prairie dogs in captivity may live up to ten years.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1eacJfpIXJsC |title=Vanderlip, S. L. (2002). Prairie Dogs: Everything about Purchase, Care, Nutrition, Handling, and Behavior. Barron's Educational Series. p. 19 |access-date= 6 January 2017|isbn=9780764121036 |last1=Vanderlip |first1=Sharon Lynn |year=2002 }}</ref> == Literary descriptions == * From [[George Wilkins Kendall]]'s account of the ''[[Texan Santa Fe Expedition]]:'' "In their habits, they are clannish, social, and extremely convivial, never living alone like other animals, but, on the contrary, always found in villages or large settlements. They are a wild, frolicsome, madcap set of fellows when undisturbed, uneasy and ever on the move, and appear to take especial delight in chattering away the time, and visiting from hole to hole to gossip and talk over each other's affairs—at least so their actions would indicate. On several occasions I crept close to their villages, without being observed, to watch their movements. Directly in the centre of one of them I particularly noticed a very large dog, sitting in front of the door or entrance to his burrow, and by his own actions and those of his neighbors it really seemed as though he was the president, mayor, or chief—at all events, he was the 'big dog' of the place. For at least an hour I secretly watched the operations in this community. During that time the large dog I have mentioned received at least a dozen visits from his fellow-dogs, which would stop and chat with him a few moments, and then run off to their domiciles. All this while he never left his post for a moment, and I thought I could discover a gravity in his deportment not discernible in those by which he was surrounded. Far is it from me to say that the visits he received were upon business, or had anything to do with the local government of the village; but it certainly appeared so. If any animal has a system of laws regulating the body politic, it is certainly the prairie dog."<ref>Kendall, ''Texan Santa Fé Expedition'', i, p. 192.</ref> [[File:Commerce of the Prairies; or, The journal of a Santa Fe trader, during eight expeditions across the great western prairies, and a residence of nearly nine years in northern Mexico (1850) (14783935403).jpg|thumb|right|"Dog Town" or settlement of prairie dogs, from ''Commerce of the Prairies'']] * From [[Josiah Gregg]]'s journal, ''Commerce of the Prairies'': "Of all the prairie animals, by far the most curious, and by no means the least celebrated, is the little ''prairie dog''. ...The flesh, though often eaten by travelers, is not esteemed savory. It was denominated the 'barking squirrel', the 'prairie ground-squirrel', etc., by early explorers, with much more apparent propriety than the present established name. Its yelp, which resembles that of the little toy-dog, seems its only canine attribute. It rather appears to occupy a middle ground betwixt the rabbit and squirrel—like the former in feeding and burrowing—like the latter in frisking, flirting, sitting erect, and somewhat so in its barking. The prairie dog has been reckoned by some naturalists a species of the [[marmot]] (''arctomys ludoviciana''); yet it seems to possess scarce any other quality in common with this animal except that of burrowing. ...I have the concurrent testimony of several persons, who have been upon the Prairies in winter, that, like rabbits and squirrels, they issue from their holes every soft day; and therefore lay up no doubt a hoard of 'hay' (as there is rarely anything else to be found in the vicinity of their towns) for winter's use. A collection of their burrows has been termed by travelers a 'dog town,' which comprises from a dozen or so, to some thousands in the same vicinity; often covering an area of several square miles. They generally locate upon firm dry plains, coated with fine short grass, upon which they feed; for they are no doubt exclusively herbivorous. But even when tall coarse grass surrounds, they seem commonly to destroy this within their 'streets,' which are nearly always found 'paved' with a fine species suited to their palates. They must need but little water, if any at all, as their 'towns' are often, indeed generally, found in the midst of the most arid plains—unless we suppose they dig down to subterranean fountains. At least they evidently burrow remarkably deep. Attempts either to dig or drown them out of their holes have generally proved unsuccessful. Approaching a 'village,' the little dogs may be observed frisking about the 'streets'—passing from dwelling to dwelling apparently on visits—sometimes a few clustered together as though in council—here feeding upon the tender herbage—there cleansing their 'houses,' or brushing the little hillock about the door—yet all quiet. Upon seeing a stranger, however, each streaks it to its home, but is apt to stop at the entrance, and spread the general alarm by a succession of shrill yelps, usually sitting erect. Yet at the report of a gun or the too near approach of the visitor, they dart down and are seen no more till the cause of alarm seems to have disappeared.<ref>[[Josiah Gregg|Gregg, Josiah]]." ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=cPw0AAAAIAAJ& Gregg's Commerce of the prairies: or, The journal of a Santa Fé trader, 1831]''. A. H. Clark, 1905. Vol.2, p. 277.</ref> ==In culture== In companies that use large numbers of [[cubicle]]s in a common space, employees sometimes use the term "prairie dogging" to refer to the action of several people simultaneously looking over the walls of their cubicles in response to a noise or other distraction. This action is thought to resemble the startled response of a group of prairie dogs.<ref>Deck, Annie. [http://www.bizjournals.com/buffalo/stories/2000/01/17/focus1.html "Revolt of the Cube-Berts"], ''Business First of Buffalo.'' 14 January 2000.</ref> The same term is also [[vulgar slang]] to refer to one who is on the verge of [[Defecation|defecating]] (often involuntarily), with the implication that fecal matter has already begun partially exiting the [[Anus|anus]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Farlex Dictionary of Idioms |url=https://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/prairie+dogging |website=The Free Dictionary by Farlex |publisher=Farlex Inc |access-date=29 August 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=prairiedogging |url=https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=prairiedogging |website=Urban Dictionary |access-date=29 August 2022}}</ref> The [[Amarillo Sod Poodles]], a minor league baseball team, use a nickname for prairie dogs as their cognomen. ==See also== * [[Communal burrow]] == References == {{Reflist|refs= <ref name="Hoogland 2002">{{cite journal|author=Hoogland, J. L. |year=2002|title=Sexual Dimorphism of Prairie Dogs|journal=Journal of Mammalogy|volume= 84|issue=4|pages= 1254–1266|doi=10.1644/BME-008|doi-access=free}}</ref> <ref name="Haynie 2002">{{cite journal|author=Haynie, M., Van Den Bussche, R. A., Hoogland, J.L., & Gilbert, D.A. |year=2002| title=Parentage, Multiple Paternity, and Breeding Success in Gunnison's and Utah Prairie Dogs|journal= Journal of Mammalogy|volume= 84 |issue=4|pages= 1244–1253|doi=10.1644/BRB-109|doi-access=free}}</ref> <ref name="Hoogland 1998">{{cite journal|author=Hoogland, J. L. |year=1998|title=Estrus and Copulation of Gunnison's Prairie Dogs|journal =Journal of Mammalogy|volume= 79|issue=3|pages=887–897|doi=10.2307/1383096|jstor=1383096|doi-access=free}}</ref> <ref name=r1>{{cite journal|author1=Foltz, D. |author2=Hoogland, J. L. |name-list-style=amp |year=1981|title=Analysis of the Mating System in the Black- Tailed Prairie Dog (''Cynomys ludovicianus'') by Likelihood of Paternity|journal= Journal of Mammalogy|volume= 62|issue=4|pages=706–712|doi=10.2307/1380592|jstor=1380592 }}</ref> <ref name=r2>{{cite journal|author=Hoogland, J. L. |year=1983|title=Black- Tailed Prairie Dog Coteries are Cooperatively Breeding Units|journal=The American Naturalist|volume= 121|issue=2|pages=275–280|doi=10.1086/284057|s2cid=84323285}}</ref> <ref name=r3>{{cite journal|author=Hoogland, J. |year=1996|url=http://www.science.smith.edu/msi/pdf/i0076-3519-535-01-0001.pdf |title= ''Cynomys ludovicianus''|journal=Mammalian Species|volume= 535|pages= 1–10|doi=10.2307/3504202|issue=535|jstor=3504202|doi-access=free}}</ref> <ref name=r4>{{cite journal | last1=Pilny | first1=A. | doi=10.1016/j.cvex.2004.02.001 | title=Prairie dog care and husbandry | year=2004 | last2=Hess | first2=Laurie | journal=Veterinary Clinics of North America: Exotic Animal Practice | volume=7 | issue=2 | pages=269–282| pmid=15145390 }}</ref> }} == External links == {{Commons category|Cynomys|<br>Cynomys<br>(Prairie dogs)}} *[http://www.desertusa.com/dec96/du_pdogs.html Desert USA: Prairie Dogs] *[https://www.flickr.com/photos/mfakheri/2531589248/ Prairie dog] *Greycliff Prairie Dog Town State Park: ** {{cite web |url=http://fwp.mt.gov/lands/site_283312.aspx |title=Site Detail - Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks |access-date=2007-05-31 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070509155825/http://fwp.mt.gov/lands/site_283312.aspx |archive-date=9 May 2007 |df=dmy-all }} ** {{cite web |url=http://travel.mt.gov/categories/moreinfo.asp?IDRRecordID=3094&siteid=1 |title=Greycliff Prairie Dog Town State Park |access-date=2007-05-31 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061007122026/http://travel.mt.gov/categories/moreinfo.asp?IDRRecordId=3094&SiteId=1 |archive-date=7 October 2006 |df=dmy-all }} *[https://web.archive.org/web/20121120213242/http://www.ksre.ksu.edu/library/wldlf2/mf2702.pdf Prairie Dog Management, Kansas State University] *{{in lang|it}} [http://www.canedellaprateria.it Italian association of Prairie dogs] {{S. Xerinae1 nav}} {{Taxonbar|from=Q30359}} {{Authority control}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Prairie Dog}} [[Category:Prairie dogs]] [[Category:Rodents of North America]] [[Category:Mammals of Canada]] [[Category:Mammals of Mexico]] [[Category:Mammals of the United States]] [[Category:Fauna of the Great Plains]] [[Category:Fauna of the Plains-Midwest (United States)]] [[Category:Fauna of the Rocky Mountains]] [[Category:Fauna of the Western United States]] [[Category:Fauna of Northern Mexico]] [[Category:Articles containing video clips]] [[Category:Taxa named by Constantine Samuel Rafinesque]]'