Wildlife, landscape and weather photography
What better way to start the day than hang out with the family at sunrise on the Colorado plains? Sounds good to me and apparently to these prairie dogs as well.
While some view this rodent as a pest, it is in fact a keystone species whose survival is crucial to many others. They are common on the Great Plains however their habitat is regularly threatened by human encroachment.
It isn’t often I take pics of these little guys although they are quite common and a little bit cute.
Right now, like many mammals, they are busily raising their spring babies which add an additional dose of cuteness. While I am oftentimes dismissive of these creatures and many people think nothing about wiping out their colonies in the name of “progress,” they play a significant role in the ecosystem.
As a keystone species, many other animals are dependent on the prairie dog. Most notably, raptors and many meat-eating mammals require them for food and burrowing owls depend on them for their summer homes.
Getting to see North America’s most endangered mammal, the Black Footed Ferret, is a rare and special treat. Since their reintroduction to the Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge, I have only seen one twice, this being one of those occasions.
After spending two hours watching and waiting for the ferret to do something, it went into a burrow and seemed to be done for the day. Some, rather dumb, prairie dog then came along and alternately stuck its nose in the burrow and tossed dirt in. That was all it took and the ferret was on the hunt. He wasn’t successful but it sure was fun to watch.
Images are severely cropped as the action took place a good ways away from me. Scroll down to view the entire sequence of images.
A male Burrowing Owl and a Prairie Dog face off over the rights to an underground home. Very fun to watch this interaction.
These two creatures have a very symbiotic relationship and normally get along great. The owls use abandoned Prairie Dogs’ burrows and they both share watch duties keeping all safe from intruders by sounding alarms when danger approaches.
The pair of Burrowing Owls at this spot though was very protective of their clan and did not like it when any type of creature intruded. In this case, the owl was being a bit over-protective. Its burrow was actually about 20 yards away and all this Prairie Dog was doing was wanting to return to its own home.
Thankfully for the Prairie Dog, the owls don’t sit for long so it just waited till the owl moved on and then it reclaimed its home.
It can’t be an easy life for these guys. Humans view them as pests and they are a constant target for other wildlife including coyotes, badgers and raptors. This particular one was in a burrow right by my truck and once I pointed the camera at it, it laid low, apparently trying to be inconspicuous.
While I am oftentimes dismissive of these creatures, I do recognize the significant role they play in the ecosystem. They are a keystone species, so important to many other creatures.
Prairie Dog pair keeping watch. I see so many of these on my photo trips that I usually just ignore them. That isn’t always easy given how loudly they ‘bark’ when they feel like they are being threatened. 😉
Anyway, today I was out for a walk and crossing through a colony and the cacophony of noise demanded my attention. All were quite focused on alerting each other about the guy with the camera so I snapped a few images of them, including these two as they peered out from their burrow.
While I am oftentimes dismissive of these creatures, I do recognize the significant role they play in the ecosystem. They are a keystone species, so important to many other creatures.
It can’t be easy being one of these creatures on the Great Plains. Threats abound as they are a food source for a wide variety of predators from eagles and hawks to fox and coyote. Man is an additional threat in many areas as Prairie Dogs are viewed as pests and can carry the plague. They are however a keystone species in many locations and critical to the overall health of the ecosystem.
Not only do many other species rely on them as food but others use their burrows for dens and nests. This particular Black-tailed Prairie Dog was up soon before sunrise recently, seeming to scout the immediate area to ensure it was safe for the rest of the colony to come out.
We are all familiar with the bigger barking dogs in our neighborhoods. These guys prefer much less crowded environs but can be just as noisy when you intrude on their homes. Prairie Dogs are quite common here on the plains of Colorado and I usually completely ignore them. However, after having what was a less than successful photo day one day last week, I was desperate to capture pictures of something – anything. This little guy provided a good opportunity and I have to admit, it was kind of cute.
Sometimes just paying attention – and a bit of luck – yields some pretty awesome photo opportunities. Driving home from work yesterday I took a bit of a different route hoping something interesting might come along.
It was looking bleak and I had given up when I glance to my right and see an eagle in a tree of a county open space. I park and start to walk toward it and what do I see but a second eagle on a pole dining on Prairie Dog.
In the end I captured dozens of great images of both of them – this is the one that was eating.
I would have posted sooner but wouldn’t you know it but no sooner did I download these images yesterday evening than I suffered a hard drive failure on my computer! Thank goodness for backups although I have spent the past day slowly working to get things up and running again.
Taken in Thornton, Colorado.
A Bald Eagle ensures it has a good grip on its prairie dog breakfast as it flies off. Taken in Adams County, Colorado yesterday.
