White-tailed prairie dog
| White-tailed prairie dog | |
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C. leucurus
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| Binomial name | |
| Cynomys leucurus (Merriam, 1890)
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| White-tailed Prairie Dog range[2] | |
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The white-tailed prairie dog (Cynomys leucurus) is found in western Wyoming and western Colorado with small areas in eastern Utah and southern Montana. The largest populations are in Wyoming where they are known colloquially as "chiselers".[3] This prairie dog species lives at an elevation between 5,000 and 10,000 feet, generally a higher elevation than other prairie dog species. Its predators include black-footed ferrets, badgers, and golden eagles.
Description
The white-tailed prairie dog is tan-brown in color, with large eyes and a dark patch on their cheeks above and below each eye.[4]
Conservation status
White-tailed prairie dogs are only in around 8% of their original territory. It is also threatened by shooting, and a disease called Sylvatic Plague that affects all prairie dogs. This animal lives in small communities that are vulnerable to being wiped out by all of these issues. This species appears in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, with a status of least concern, last assessed in 1996.[1] Petitions have been made to protect the white-tailed prairie dog, but they have been denied by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service due to insufficient scientific data describing current population trends.[5] This denial is being reconsidered, because former deputy assistant secretary Julie MacDonald has been found to have improperly influenced the scientific basis of the denial. Groups such as the Biodiversity Conservation Alliance are working to get this animal on the list.[6]
References
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Cynomys leucurus. |
- Prairie dogs videos (in English)
- Prairie Dogs-Biodiversity Conservation Alliance
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- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Linzey, A. V. & NatureServe (Hammerson, G.) (2008). Cynomys leucurus. In: IUCN 2008. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Retrieved 6 January 2009.
- ↑ IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) 2008. Cynomys leucurus. In: IUCN 2014. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2014.3
http://www.iucnredlist.org. Downloaded on 05 February 2015. - ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ http://www.r6.fws.gov/species/mammals/wtprairiedog/ US Fish and Wildlife Service
- ↑ http://mountain-prairie.fws.gov/pressrel/04-78.htm US Fish and Wildlife Service White-tailed Prairie Dog Press Release
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
