Black-tailed Prairie Dog

Black-tailed Prairie Dog (Cynomys ludovicianus)
Description A close cousin of the ground squirrel, the Black-tailed Prairie Dog is a heavy-bodied rodent with a black-tipped tail.

Black-tailed Prairie Dog (Cynomys ludovicians)
When prairie dogs sense danger, the sentinel prairie dog gives a two-syllable sharp, warning bark, bobs up and down, calls
again, and then quickly disappears in its burrow.

Black-tailed Prairie Dog
Black-tailed prairie dog
Photo by Chuck Dresner
Black-tailed prairie dog at a tunnel entrance
Photo by Chuck Dresner ...

Black-tailed Prairie Dog
Relatives in same Genus
White-tailed Prairie Dog (C. leucurus)
Utah Prairie Dog (C. parvidens) ...

The Black-tailed Prairie Dog (Cynomys ludovicianus) occurs from Texas to Canada in the prairies along the eastern front of the Rocky Mountains. The species forms large colonies or "towns" some of which may stretch for miles.

Black-tailed Prairie Dog (Cynomys ludovicianus)
No photo of the Black-tailed Prairie Dog available.

Black-tailed prairie dogs typically inhabit short-grass prairies; they usually avoid areas of heavy brush and tall grass, possibly because visibility is considerably reduced.

RangeThe black-tailed prairie dog can be found in parts of Montana, Nebraska, Wyoming, North Dakota, South Dakota, Oklahoma, Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, Oklahoma and Texas.

Black-tailed prairie dog
Black-tailed prairie dogs are burrowing rodents that live on the North American grassy plains and prairies in a range that stretches from Canada to Mexico.

Black-tailed Prairie Dog
Cynomys ludovicianus
Although they stand at only 30 cm (12 in.) high and weigh about 1 kg (1-3 lb.), black-tailed prairie dogs make a substantial impact on the ecosystem of the North American plains.

Black-tailed prairie dogs exhibit a very complex social system and are considered more social than most of the other species (except for Gunnison's prairie dog).

Black-tailed Prairie Dog
Cynomys ludovicianus (Ord)
Description: The black-tailed prairie dog is a heavy-bodied, short-legged rodent closely related to other ground squirrels.

The Black-tailed Prairie Dog (Cynomys ludovicianus), is found in the Great Plains of North America from about the USA-Canada border to the USA-Mexico border. It isnamed for the black tip of its tail.

Black-Tailed Prairie Dog »
The black-tailed prairie dog is a member of the squirrel family. Of the five species of prairie dogs in western North America, only the black-tailed prairie dog lives in the Great Plains.
Bobcat » ...

Black-Tailed Prairie Dog
Cynomys ludovicianus
Active and extremely social, black-tailed prairie dogs live in complex communities. They are an important part of the prairie ecosystem. They help keep the soil healthy by loosening it with their digging.

Black-tailed prairie dogs can be found in the Great Plains from Montana and southern Saskatchewan to northern Mexico. Prairie dogs inhabit open plains and plateaus. They live in underground communities called towns.

Black-tailed Prairie Dog
Prairie dogs are not really dogs; they are rodents. Prairie dogs create complex underground communities called "towns" that have elaborate tunnel systems and chambers.

Black-tailed prairie dogs tolerate "high degrees" of disturbance over long periods of time [27,52].

Black-tailed prairie dogs, the best known of the five prairie dog species, live in larger communities called towns, which may contain many hundreds of animals.

Black-tailed prairie dogs have incomplete hibernation, their activity and appetite are decreased during the winter. They may sleep for many days at a time, but the town is usually active during the milder days of the winter.

The black-tailed prairie dog becomes mature at 2 years. They will mate in the early spring, from February to March. The female is pregnant for 34 to 37 days. There are 1 to 6 babies in a litter who are born blind and hairless.

Black-tailed Prairie Dog ( Cynomys ludovicianus )
Blesbok ( Damaliscus dorcas phillipsi )
Blue Whale ( Balaenoptera musculus )
Bobcat ( Lynx rufus )
Bongo ( Tragelaphus euryceros )
Bottlenose Dolphin ( Tusiops truncatus ) ...

The black-tailed prairie dog, Cynomys ludovicianus, is found on the Great Plains. Members of this species live in connecting burrows, forming colonies, or "towns," which may extend many miles and include thousands of individuals.

: Black-tailed prairie dogs fall victim to a variety of predatory species. Terrestrial predators include coyotes, badgers, lynx, black-footed ferrets, rattlesnakes, and bullsnakes.

Black-tailed prairie dogs live in large groups with a complex of burrows (called "towns", which are subdivided into smaller "wards"); white-tailed prairie dogs live in smaller groups in scattered burrows.

The Prairies of central North America are a huge homeland for the black-tailed prairie dog. But it is abundant only in the 'rancher' country of South Dakota, Arizona and New Mexico.

Black-tailed prairie dog (Cynomys ludovicianus)
Least pygmy squirrel (Exilisciurus exilis)
Dusky-striped squirrel (Funambulus sublineatus)
Pale giant squirrel (Ratufa affinis)
Utah prairie dog (Cynomys parvidens) ...

The Five Species: The prairie dog is considered a ground squirrel. There are five species of prairie dog: the black-tailed prairie dog, the white-tailed prairie dog, the Gunnison's prairie dog, the Utah prairie dog and the Mexican prairie dog.

It will find, according to the Wildlife Habitat Management Institute’s leaflet, “The Black-Tailed Prairie Dog,' that its neighbors live in what biologists call “wards, ...

See also: Prairie Dog, Squirrel, Burro, Antelope, Porcupine