Home on the Range.

• Author: Baker, Kim
• Position: THE ENVIRONMENT - Prairie ecosystem

The prairie dog--why is this cute little member of the rodent family so hated? Ranchers do not like them because they fear their livestock will step in a prairie dog burrow and break a leg. Horse people feel the same. In truth, the odds of such an occurrence are very slim.

Urbanites fear prairie dogs because of plague and other diseases--yet these numbers are quite small. You just might have a better chance of winning the lottery than getting the plague from a prairie dog. True, incidents have been reported of people contracting diseases through contact with a domestic dog, but again, these numbers are miniscule. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1,006 cases of plague were reported between 1900-2012. Unless you want to stick your head down a prairie dog burrow and play host to some fleas, you are pretty safe.

Ranchers and urbanites also dislike prairie dogs because they see "destruction" of the grasses in the towns. On the surface, it does appear as though prairie dogs do destroy the landscape when they set up shop. However, like most wildlife, their territory has been impinged upon by human development. We move into their territory and demand--no, require--they exist in a subset of their original range to survive.

In any circumstance where overgrazing or drought occurs, bare dirt conditions can exist. Prairie dogs clip the grass short to be able to see oncoming predators. What you "see" is well-aerated soils and a diverse, healthy grassland ecosystem that is thriving and providing nutrition to larger grazing animals such as bison, pronghorn, and deer. In fact, prairie dog towns are a smorgasbord for many species. Grasslands are like a miniature forest. A lot is going on in this ecosystem, and much of it is occurring underground--and prairie dog towns play a vital role

Kristy Bly, a biologist with the World Wildlife Fund, describes prairie dogs as "the chicken McNuggets of the prairie." Their colonies provide food and shelter to a number of other animals, including burrowing owls, black-footed ferrets, badgers, snakes, salamanders, turtles, and insects. For instance, contrary to their name, burrowing owls cannot actually burrow. They rely on the prairie dog burrows to nest and raise their young.

When prairie dogs are devoid of an area, "it's like walking through a ghost town." Bly explains. All of the other species have disappeared along with the prairie dogs.

The burrows consist of a mud room and tunnel systems...