A Brief Look at Prairie Dogs

Prairie dogs live in underground burrows, extensive warrens of tunnels and chambers marked by many mounds of packed earth at their surface entrances. This mound serves as a lookout and protects the burrow against floods. In addition, their elaborate tunnel system helps prevent run off and erosion caused by the rain. Burrows have defined nurseries, sleeping quarters, and even toilets. When a bathroom chamber is filled, the prairie dogs will dig a new one rather than clear the existing one. In addition to using their mounds as listening posts, they also feature listening chambers near the exits, so animals can safely keep tabs on the movements of predators outside. Prairie dogs spend a lot of time building and rebuilding these dwellings to ensure that they remain effective. These systems are arranged so that wind blows through and provides ventilation to their homes. Several tunnels are excavated from the main tunnel to provide nesting areas and places to rest and avoid the hotter part of summer days. Prairie dogs also use these tunnels during the winter to escape bad weather and the cold. They do not hibernate like the true ground squirrels, but do remain dormant in the nest during the peak of winter. On nice days, they can be seen on the surface. When the landscape does not suit them, they change it to be safer and more comfortable in their homes. The prairie dog modified landscape attracts a distinct group of animals. Burrows may be shared by snakes, burrowing owls, and even rare black-footed ferrets, which hunt prairie dogs in their own dwellings. The tunnels go down about three meters (or ten feet ) and can be 15 meters ( 50 feet) from one entrance to another. Prairie dogs rarely leave the safety of their habitats, therefore they spend a lot of time and effort to maintain it and keep it functional. Existing tunnels and chambers are constantly refined and new tunnels and chambers are always in progress.

A prairie dog community will generally stay within a specific spot of land until they are forced to leave it and go elsewhere. At this point, the community generally is split up since the only way prairie dogs leave their homes is due to severe natural disaster.

The prairie dog's passionate personality is rooted in nature. Because of the social structures in which it lives (the "towns" one can see on the western plains), the prairie dog's existence depends on living harmoniously with others. Indeed, it is its highly gregarious social life that makes it unique among animals. A prairie dog will love its family members as if its life depends on it -- which, in fact, it does. This is key to the animal's habitat and community because without this trusting bond, the animals wouldn't be able to collaborate and live together successfully. This animal's survival depends on living in a community. In the wild, a prairie dog town is very much like human society: Each little family has its own few square feet of dirt, everybody has a job, and the animals are dependent on one another.

Work Cited:

http://www.npwrc.usgs.gov/resource/mammals/mammals/prairie.htm

http://www.animalhospitals-usa.com/small_pets/prairie_dogs.html