The black-tailed prairie dog (Cynomys ludovicianus), is a rodent of the family sciuridae found in the Great Plains of North America from about the USA-Canada border to the USA-Mexico border. Unlike some other prairie dogs, these animals do not truly hibernate. The Black-tailed prairie dog can be seen aboveground in midwinter. There is a report of a Black-tailed prairie dog town in Texas that covered 64,000 km2 (25,000 sq mi) and included 400,000,000 individuals. Prior to habitat destruction, this species was probably the most abundant prairie dog in central North America.
Ten Facts about Black-tailed Prairie Dog
- Adults can weigh from 1.5 to 3 lb (0.68 to 1.4 kg), males are typically heavier than females.
- Body length is normally from 14 to 17 in (36 to 43 cm), with a 3 to 4 in (7.6 to 10 cm) tail.
- Prairie dogs live from 3 to 5 years.
- Eastern Montana and southwestern North Dakota south to extreme southeastern Arizona, New Mexico, and northwestern Texas.
- Sexual maturity at 1-2 years.
- Gestataion period is 30 days.
- Black-tailed prairie dogs occupy approximately 2.4 million acres across its range.
- Baby prairie dogs are born with no hair. Once a year the female has litter of four pups. Pups stay in the burrows for about six or seven weeks.
- Many predators hunt these rodents including badgers, weasels, ferrets, hawks, owls, coyotes, foxes, bobcats and snakes.
- Prairie dogs feed on leaves, grasses and grass roots, weeds, seeds and other plants (including crops like alfalfa and corn). They also eat grasshoppers, cutworms, bug and beetles.
