How many prairie dogs are there

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Some scientists believe that prairie dogs have one of the most complex animal languages ever decoded. On a basic level, prairie dogs can signal different threats. For example, they can communicate the difference between a coyote and a domestic dog.

In fact, scientists think that prairie dogs may have developed such complex language from a need to respond to a diverse array of predators, all with different hunting strategies.

In addition to identifying specific threats, prairie dogs can further communicate size, shape, color, and speed. Prairie dogs are a keystone species. A keystone species is one that many other species, both plant and animal, depend upon for survival. Keystone species are incredibly important to their ecosystems, and if removed, the ecosystem itself may collapse.

Prairie dogs serve as a prairie keystone species by getting eaten, making homes for other animals, clipping vegetation, and much more. Prairie dogs are a major target as prey. Many different animals eat then due to their small size. The Badlands is home to several different predators of prairie dogs: coyotes, bobcats, badgers, foxes, rattlesnakes, and birds of prey. Another important prairie dog predator which calls the Badlands its home is the black-footed ferret , one of the most endangered species in North America.

Black-footed ferrets eat prairie dogs exclusively. Prairie dogs are also considered a keystone species because of the burrowing networks they build. These burrows, of course, protect prairie dogs from natural dangers like predators and flash flooding, but they also work as a miniature apartment complex.

Many animals call prairie dog towns home! One Badlands animal that lives in these towns is the burrowing owl, which makes its nests and homes in abandoned prairie dog dwellings. Rattlesnakes will also take up residence in prairie dog burrows for the winter when they enter a period of inactivity called brumation.

Prairie dogs also have major effects on plant life. Additionally, the constant trimming of vegetation contributes to growth that is higher in nutritional quality. This clearing also increases visibility in and around colonies, which attracts grassland birds looking for easy hunting grounds.

Threats to Prairie Dog Populations Despite being a keystone species, prairie dog populations face many dangers — some of which extend far beyond the watchful eyes of predators. Climatic changes could affect the plant life surrounding prairie dog towns.

Changes in the availability of edible plants could mean starvation. With overcrowding issues, starvation becomes a risk and disease can spread more quickly. Luckily, national parks like the Badlands allow colonies to spread within park boundaries, where prairie dogs should have plenty of room to expand. Disease is a serious threat to prairie dog populations. In , trade ships from Asia brought over rats which carried Yersinia pestis, bacterium which causes Sylvatic Plague.

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