Wildlife Photograph - Prairie Dog by Dean Harte

Prairie Dog is a photograph by Dean Harte which was uploaded on August 24th, 2022.

Prairie Dog

Prairie Dog

A prairie dog (Genus Cynomys) surveys its territory. Native to the grasslands of North America, this species of burrowing ground... more

by Dean Harte

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Title

Prairie Dog

Artist

Dean Harte

Medium

Photograph

Description

Prairie Dog

A prairie dog (Genus Cynomys) surveys its territory. Native to the grasslands of North America, this species of burrowing ground squirrel lives in colonies in extensive networks of underground tunnels. Prairie dogs are highly social animals and their colonies can number hundreds of thousands. Within these colonies are various coteries, which consist of one adult male, three of four females and their young (up to the age of one).

Prairie dogs on average are 30 centimetres in length and weigh between 0.5 and 1.5 kilos. They feed on herbs, grasses, leaves and seeds and communicate through an elaborate system of vocalizations and body language; their warning signal sounds like a dog’s bark, which is also (partially) how they got their name. Alternative names for prairie dogs include dogtown residents, prairie pups, grassland gophers and sod poodles. The largest prairie dog colony ever found was in Texas; it measured a 100 by 250 miles and was home to an estimated 400 million animals!

Uploaded

August 24th, 2022