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Gunnison's Prairie Dog (Cynomys gunnisoni) is one of five species of the Prairie Dog. Predominantly related to the North American and Eurasian ground squirrels, this species belongs to the squirrel family of rodents. Gunnison’s Prairie Dogs are primarily distrubuted in the four corners of North America: the region where Utah, Colorado, New Mexico, and Arizona meet.
[edit] Physical Description Gunnison’s Prairie Dogs possess a body that is stout with a very short tail that measures 1.25 to 2.25 inches (3 to 6 centimeters). Their overall size differs anywhere from around 12 to 14 inches (30 to 37 centimeters). However, on average males are usually larger in size than females. This breed weighs from a range of 1.5 to 2.5 lbs (0.5 to 1 kg). A Gunnison's prairie dog skull holds 22 teeth. The animals have 5 pairs of mammary glands.[2] One of the five species of prairie dogs; the Gunnison’s Prairie Dog, C. gunnisoni, is the only prairie dog type that has 40 chromosomes rather than the rest of the species with 50 chromosomes.[3] Their coat is a warm, yellow-toned buff merged with black colored hairs. However, the upper head, sides of the cheek, and eyebrows are distinctly darker than the rest of the body. Although the tail appears all white, the farthest part of the short tail is light gray in color and the hairs are tipped with grayish white. The Gunnison’s Prairie Dogs go through two yearly periodic shedding during spring and fall. In spring, the shedding begins from the front working its way to the rear tail. The process is reversed in the winter, as it start from the tail and proceeds to the front region.[4] An intriguing physical trait of this species is the position of their eyes. They are placed on the sides of their heads, so they are able to observe any movement from a wide space. Because of its position, they are able to spot predators and react as quick as possible.[5] [edit] Habitat The Gunnison's Prairie Dog can be found in high desert, grasslands and sometimes shrubs, such as rabbit brush, sagebrush, and salt brush. The habitats that these prairie dogs occupy include meadows, hillsides, broad alluvial valleys and floodplains. This species of prairie dogs resides in habitats ranging from 6,000-10,000 feet in altitude, although they have been recorded at altitudes as high as 12,000 feet.[6] Gunnison’s Prairie Dogs live in colonies of up to several hundred individuals with each colony subdivided into smaller territories occupied by communal groups or solitary individuals.[7]These communities of prairie dogs vary from 2 to 19 individuals and may be composed of a single male/single female, single male/multiple females, or multiple males/multiple females.[7]Arrangement of the social groups appears to be linked with the distribution of food resources. The territories inhabited by the Gunnison’s Prairie Dog are defended by social groups and violent behavior is common toward other animals who are not members. These prairie dogs often feed in feebly defended peripheral sections of their territories that belong to other groups, but when members from different groups meet in these common feeding areas, conflicts can arise, with one prairie dog chasing the other back to its territory. The Gunnison's Prairie Dog is one of five species of prairie dog, all of which are native to North America. This type of prairie dog can be found in the four corners area of Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, and Utah.[8] Three-quarters of the Gunnison's Prairie Dog existence is settled in Arizona and New Mexico.[9] The sagebrush ecosystem is dependent on these animals. They present food, keep the plant and soil communities vigorous, and create habitats. As a result of the Gunnison’s Prairie Dogs burrowing, the soil is freshened, organic matter is added, and increased water penetration is able to occur. Even though this environmentally friendly creature is the basis of the ecosystem, the Gunnison’s Prairie Dog along with other prairie dog species is in jeopardy of becoming extinct. [edit] NutritionFor the Gunnison’s Prairie Dog, feeding usually happens in the day time when they are most active.[9]This type of animal is active during the months of April through October. Their nutrition usually consists of feeding on bits and parts of grasses, herbs, and leaves.[10]When spring comes around, newly grown shrubs are eaten. In the summer time, they consume seeds, which make up their diet for that season. During winter and fall, food is very scarce but there are still stems and roots that can be consumed. The food they accumulate is stored in their burrows. Most prairie dogs are known to be vegetarians but there are some that prefer eat insects. The Gunnison's Prairie Dog has incredibly high cheek teeth, which makes them exceed all other mammals of this type.[11] With exception of two types of prairie dog, most of them are known to hibernate. The two types of prairie dogs that do not hibernate are the Black-tailed and Mexican. During the winter, they stay in their burrows for long periods of time without food or water, using physiological adaptations to control their metabolism. Also during hibernation, their bodies mostly rely solely on their body fat content as they sleep throughout the winter. After hibernation, they become active again around March or April. [edit] Behavior All prairie dogs, including the Gunnison’s Prairie Dog are diurnal.[9]This means that, during warm weather, they exert the most activity in the early morning and late afternoon. According to Fitzgerald and Lechleitner, the highest activity levels occur at about 9 a.m., as well as 2 p.m. to about an hour before the sun sets. When the temperature starts to cool, the Gunninson’s Prairie Dogs become more active during the day. If it happens to snow or rain, the prairie dogs will stay underground. While they are above ground, their activities include making social contact, being aware of their surroundings and predators, grooming, etc. But, their main activity above ground is feeding. Gunnison’s Prairie Dogs dig their own holes. These prairie dogs are also extremely social animals and live in colonies.[9]Their colonies usually consist of several hundred prairie dogs. Although Gunnison’s Prairie Dogs are considered less social than Black-Tailed Prairie Dogs, they are considerably more social than the White-Tailed Prairie Dogs. Studies have shown that female Gunnison prairie dogs are far more likely to engage in friendly social contact with other prairie dogs than males, and males are more likely to create conflict. Gunnison’s Prairie Dogs also have an extremely sophisticated way of communicating with each other.[9]Their way of communication seems to be a special language, and there are even different dialects within the Gunnison’s Prairie Dogs’ colonies themselves. Differences in habitat locations may account for this fact. They have different barks for a warning, snarl, the “all-clear” signal, growl, etc. Females usually give off their warning bark before the males, so they can protect their kin. It has been proven that females that have kin have a special anti-predator call. They use this call when they think they are in danger. If the female does not have kin, they are less likely to use this call. When the prairie dogs use this call their lower jaw moves vigorously. [edit] CommunicationThe Gunnison’s prairie dog has an important aspect that is their foundation to their survival and structure of their community. Prairie dogs have a wonderful system of communication that appears to be quite astonishing because of its complexity. They have a variety of warning barks that indicate different types of predators.The bark is a combination of one or two high-pitched audible syllables, with the second syllable lower and deeper.[12]These prairie dogs have a unique sound to identify the various predators that inhabit their land. Some of their known predators include the American badgers, coyotes, weasels, and raptors.[13] The warning signal is their primary source of survival because informs the other prairie dogs that danger lurks nearby. It can last for as long as thirty minutes and can be heard for nearly a mile away. As danger approaches closer, the intensity of the signal increases and ends after the prairie dog has entered into its safe haven. Studies have shown that prairie dogs are quite intelligent because they can distinguish between the different colors of clothing that people wear and people expressing threatening and non-threatening behavior. Prairie dogs may have one of the most advanced forms of communication of all natural animal languages.[3] Con Slobodchikoff, a Northern Arizona University biology professor, has been a researching the behavior of prairie dogs for twenty years and has been convinced that they “have one of the most advanced forms of natural language known to science.” Researchers and experts have been able to classify up to eleven of the distinct warning calls that the prairie dog uses to communicate.[14]The prairie dogs can communicate through forms of physical contact when they are cuddling and kissing and through vocalization, such as a warning bark. [edit] Breeding and Life SpanThe Gunnison’s Prairie Dog mating season begins in mid-March and lasts until mid-May. A female Gunnison’s Prairie Dog becomes able to reproduce at the age of one year old. If the food availability is scarce around the time of mating season, they may wait another entire year before copulating. Females engage in sexual intercourse for a single day during the mating season and can mate with approximately five males, depending on the population density of their habitat. Gestation, or the length of pregnancy, for Gunnison’s Prairie Dogs lasts, on average, 30 days.[7]Females produce one litter per year containing four to five young.[15] Once the babies are born, the mother Gunnison’s Prairie Dog breast-feeds her pups for roughly 30 to 40 days. During this time the young pups remain safely in the nesting burrow located underneath the ground.Towards the end of lactation, the young are able to come out above ground; they must learn how to separate themselves from their mothers and survive on their own. As soon as the mother is done caring her young, she relocates herself to another burrow, leaving the now independent prairie dogs behind. Not too long after, the young scatter to other vacant lairs.[4]A high percentage of female Gunnison’s prairie Dogs settle close by their birth territory for their entire lifetime, whereas a significantly low percentage of the male Gunnison’s Prairie Dogs stay close by for longer than one year.[7] The life span of a Gunnison’s Prairie Dog is generally three to five years old in the wild but they can live up to eight years of age. The population of the Gunnison’s Prairie Dog declining drastically due to three major factors: shootings, plague cycles, and poisoning.[7]Many concerned groups of people are requesting that the Gunnison’s Prairie Dog be listed under the federal Endangered Species Act.[16] [edit] Predators and DiseasesThe predators of the Gunnison’s Prairie Dog include badgers, wolves, coyotes, bobcats, black-footed ferrets, golden eagles and large hawks.[9]The prairie dog population has decreased dramatically because of the poisoning programs of ranchers who have decided that the prairie dog breed were pests. The plague, caused by Yersinia pestis and transmitted via fleas, can ultimately wipe out a numerous individuals of the prairie dog populations. It is not known why this type of species is affected by it. [edit] Notes
[edit] References
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