14 images Created 5 Jun 2019
Prairie Dogs
Black-tailed Prairie Dogs
Prairie dogs are a type of ground squirrel that live in the grasslands of North America. They are herbivorous and dig extensive systems of burrows. They are called prairie dogs because of a warning call that is similar to a dog’s bark. Meriwether Lewis described them in 1806 as a “barking squirrels.” Black-tailed prairie dogs once numbered in the hundreds of millions – maybe even over a billion – and were possibly the most abundant mammal in North America. But as ranching and farming filled the grasslands of North America there was an aggressive effort to eradicate them from the land. They were believed to be competing for feed for cattle, and the burrows they created were despised by farmers. Their numbers have decreased by over 95%. Today, they may number around 10-20 million. Removal of prairie dogs has altered the ecosystem, as they were a primary food source for a variety of mammal and avian predators. The following photos were taken after a March snowstorm in Louisville, Colorado. To see the text for each photo, view in full size.
Prairie dogs are a type of ground squirrel that live in the grasslands of North America. They are herbivorous and dig extensive systems of burrows. They are called prairie dogs because of a warning call that is similar to a dog’s bark. Meriwether Lewis described them in 1806 as a “barking squirrels.” Black-tailed prairie dogs once numbered in the hundreds of millions – maybe even over a billion – and were possibly the most abundant mammal in North America. But as ranching and farming filled the grasslands of North America there was an aggressive effort to eradicate them from the land. They were believed to be competing for feed for cattle, and the burrows they created were despised by farmers. Their numbers have decreased by over 95%. Today, they may number around 10-20 million. Removal of prairie dogs has altered the ecosystem, as they were a primary food source for a variety of mammal and avian predators. The following photos were taken after a March snowstorm in Louisville, Colorado. To see the text for each photo, view in full size.
