What's New

Prairie Dog Day

February may seem far away, but it’s time to start planning our next Prairie Dog Day activities. In 2007, Prairie dog Day was celebrated from coast to coast and children in more than 50 classrooms got to learn about the prairie dog and take action on their behalf! Each class we visited received a Prairie Basket filled with children’s books, student created activity books, educational DVDs, songs, prairie dog skeletons, bones and literature for the teachers. In 2008, we plan to take this project even further! Our committee intends to get into even more classrooms, and expand our territory and media coverage beyond Colorado & New Mexico. If you are interested in participating in the planning committee, have a classroom you’d like us to visit or want to be involved in another way, visit our website and contact us today.

PDC & Prairie Preservation Alliance Team Up With Jane Goodall’s Roots & Shoots Group

With the help of Judy Enderle, President of PPA and PDC board member, we set up a three part series for Lafayette’s local Roots & Shoots group. Students were treated to an educational presentation by Judy, and a visit from a rescued prairie dog brought by the Denver Zoo. Students also planted native vegetation to enhance a prairie dog barrier in Broomfield, CO. The barrier prohibits prairie dogs from being poisoned.

Colorado & South Dakota Voters Weigh in on Prairie Dog Protection

In September of 2006, we took a poll of 400 voters to determine what they think about prairie dog protection and find out if you all know just how endangered the prairie dog really is. We found out that...

65% of Colorado voters oppose poisoning prairie dogs on public lands.
68% of Colorado voters oppose allowing recreational shooting of prairie dogs on public land.
63% of voters in both states favor strict protections for prairie dogs on public lands.
72% of Colorado voters favored requiring developers to pay a mitigation fee for destroying prairie dog colonies

After hearing arguments on both sides of prairie dog protection, the amount of public support in favor of prairie dog protection increased.

We also found out that most people did not know the prairie dog population has decreased.

This is a big sign that we need to be getting the word out that in fact, prairie dogs have declined by at least 95%!

Now we all have a chance to spread the word!

Use the enclosed bookmark to help us get the correct messages out for prairie dogs.

Poll conducted by Lake Research Partners. Margin of error is +/- 4.9% across both states and +/- 6.9% in each state.

The Prairie Dog Coalition and members John Hoogland and Dianne James present our new website

101 Questions and Answers About Prairie Dogs.
ASK A PRAIRIE DOG EXPERT

Click here to visit the site.

The purpose of our interactive website is to increase the understanding of prairie dogs. Users may submit questions and receive answers about prairie dogs online.

John Hoogland is a professor of biology at The University of Maryland, and has been studying the ecology and social behavior of prairie dogs under natural conditions for the last 33 years. He studied black-tailed prairie dogs at Wind Cave National Park in South Dakota for 16 years; then studied Gunnison’s prairie dogs at Petrified Forest National Park in Arizona for 7 years; and then scrutinized Utah prairie dogs at Bryce Canyon National Park in Utah for 10 years. John has just initiated long-term research with white-tailed prairie dogs at The Arapaho National Wildlife Refuge in Colorado. His two most important publications are The Black-tailed Prairie Dog (University of Chicago Press, 1995) and Conservation of the Black-tailed Prairie Dog (Island Press, 2006).

Dianne James has been an active participant in relocation of black-tailed prairie dogs in the Denver area, and has contributed efforts toward scientific research into the anatomy, physiology, and epidemiology of prairie dogs. She is proactive in her approach as she advocates for all five species of prairie dogs and has lobbied for legislation that promotes the conservation of prairie dogs and their grassland habitats, and has answered hundreds of questions about prairie dogs for lawmakers, administrators, and curious naturalists. Dianne has welcomed countless prairie dogs (black-tailed and Gunnison’s) into her home for rescue and rehabilitation and can answer many of your questions about caring for prairie dogs. Her passion for prairie dogs has effectively spread throughout the communities she is a part of.

Please visit our website and pass this announcement on to your email lists. Thank you.

Need to dig for prairie dog information?

Predator Conservation Alliance, The Prairie Dog Coalition and the Denver Zoological Foundation are proud to announce the launch of the first-ever online scientific database focused on the prairie dog ecosystems

The Prairie Dog Ecosystem Science Library

With over 2,600 entries, this online library catalogs articles from a wide range of sources including scientific and trade publications, magazines, and community resources dating from the 1800s to present. Many of the article abstracts and hard-copies are available upon request.

Besides prairie dogs, research on other species living in the prairie dog ecosystem are also included-- black-footed ferrets, burrowing owls, swift foxes, ferruginous hawks, and many others!

Search by keyword(s), title, author name, or article abstract & it is FREE!

Use the database for comparative research, collecting scientific data, reading management plans, classroom education, or other creative ideas.

Enjoy!

Dr. Jane Goodall Joins the Prairie Dog Coalition!

Thanks to volunteer, Joanne Reince, Dr. Jane Goodall, DBE, founder of the Jane Goodall Institute and U.N. Messenger of Peace has agreed to supoort the mission of the Prairie Dog Coalition. Coalition members had the honor of meeting with Dr. Goodall to discuss the plight of the prairie dog and our protection efforts. Dr. Goodall had some great ideas that we are excited to pursue! Stay tuned for this exciting advance for prairie dogs and their habitat. Welcome Dr. Jane Goodall.

Nine different wildlife species depend on the prairie dog and their habitat for their survival. The prairie dog is a critical component to healthy North American grasslands. ~ Dr. Jane Goodall ~

Power point presentations from the 2003 Prairie Dog Summit are up and ready for user viewing.
Click here or click on resources link on the left side menu for access.
All presentations were accompanied by a talk.
All research included in the presentations belong to the authors.
Use permission must be obtained from the authors. Unauthorized use is illegal. For further information on any of the presentations, contact the members on the Coalition Members page or the Coalition office at info@prairiedogcoalition.org or 720-938-0788 to retrieve contact information for the presenters.