Black Tailed Prairie Dogs (Cynomys)

Order: Rodentia
Conservation Status: Least Concern (IUCN red list), though maybe be threatened in some areas
Distribution: primarily in the North American Great Plains, spanning from southern Canada down to northern Mexico
Habitat: shortgrass and mixed-grass prairies, sagebrush steppes, and desert grasslands
Diet: grasses, sedges, roots, seeds, and various forbs (flowering plants). Occasionally they eat invertebrates as well
Size (from nose to tail): 30-40cm
Weight: 0.9-1.5kg
Threats: The sylvatic plague, habitat loss and degradation, and human conflict. Plague, an introduced flea-borne disease, can decimate colonies, while habitat loss from agriculture, urbanization, and development has drastically reduced their range. Additionally, conflicts with humans, who may view them as pests damaging crops, lead to persecution through poisoning and shooting. Drought and climate change are also expected to increase the frequency of plague and habitat stress

The black tailed prairie dog is a social, diurnal ground squirrel, that live in large, complex underground burrows with large colonies. A group of prairie dogs is called a 'town', the largest recorded town was found in Texas, covering 25,000 square miles (64,000 square kilometres) and home to about 400 million prairie dogs. Within these towns are tight-knit family groups known as 'coteries', usually consisting of one or two males, a female females and offspring. Families share food, chase off other prairie dogs, and groom one another. They greet members of their own family with a kiss and have a sophisticated communication system! A warning cry, or 'bark', sends the whole town back into their burrows, followed by an "all-clear" cry once the danger is gone. Prairie Dogs mate only once a year in early winter, with a one-hour window to mate in. After a gestation of 30 days, they give birth to litters of 3–8 pups. Pups are born blind and hairless and need a lot of looking after from the adults in their family. Sadly, over half will not survive their first year in the wild due to predators.

Did you Know? The black tailed prairie dogs are "Ecosytem Engineers"! The foraging and burrowing behaviour allows them to modify their environment, creating habitat for other species and influencing the local plant and and fauna.

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