Black-Tailed Prairie Dog
Description:
The prairie dog is a stout, burrowing ground squirrel that gets its name from its high-pitched-dog-like bark. This is a large prairie dog. They may grow to be between 14 to 16 inches in length and weigh between 32 to 48 ounces. They are pinkish brown above; whitish or buffy white below with a slim, sparsely haired tail with black tip unique among prairie dogs. They have short, rounded ears; large black eyes. They mate from February-March with 1 litter per year of usually 4 or 5 young born after gestation of about 30 days.
Habitat:
Shortgrass prairies.
Diet:
Green plants, including various kinds of grasses, such as grama grass, bluegrass, bromegrass. It occasionally eats a few insects, especially grasshoppers, and may rarely eat meat. It habitually consumes all the green vegetation around its burrow, not only because it is convenient, but also to clear away protective cover that might shield predators.
Interesting Facts:
Among the most gregarious of mammals, the Prairie Dog lives in "towns." The town is divided into territorial neighborhoods, or "wards," which in turn are composed of several "coteries," or family groups of one male, one to four females, and their young of up to two years of age. Sociable animals, Prairie Dogs approach each other, touch noses, and turn their heads sideways to touch incisors; this "kissing" is not part of courtship, but a gesture of recognition and identification among ward members. They groom one another and cooperate in building of burrows. They are highly vocal with a sound spectrogram that indicates that it has nine distinctive calls. In July 1998 the National Wildlife Federation petitioned the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to list the species as threatened under the Endangered Species Act
