Did You Know That Prairie Dogs Build Their Own Town?

Families of prairie dogs burrow in the ground to make tunnels and nests. Since many families burrow in the same area, they build what looks like a large town of prairie dogs. Prairie dogs are small burrowing rodents whose call is something like a dog barking. A family of prairie dogs usually is make up of a male, several females and a number of young. Such a family is known as a coterie, and a number of coteries close together form a town. Some towns may cover as much as 160 acres (65 ha). Prairie dogs eat the grass, especially any tall grass, in the vicinity of their burrow entrances. This eliminates all cover for predators, which can then be spotted in time for the prairie dogs to escape to the safety of their burrow. The prairie dogs' greatest enemy is the black-footed weasel, which is then enough to get inside their burrows and attack them.