Plague hits prairie dogs in southeastern Colorado
Story By: Associated Press
Source: AP
The U.S. Forest Service says an outbreak of the plague is killing black-tailed prairie dogs in the
Comanche National Grassland in southeastern Colorado. The agency said Monday that prairie dog colonies at the grassland decreased from 16,000 acres in 2005 to about 3,600 acres this year.
Conservation groups say the Comanche population was one of the largest in the state, and the die-off indicates the species needs federal protection. State and federal officials say localized die-offs from plague are common in prairie dogs.
Pete Gober is a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service field supervisor overseeing a review of the animals. He says prairie dog populations "wax and wane over a decade's time frame rather than year to year or moment to moment."
Gober says just because the animals are declining locally doesn't mean they won't recover.
