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Study Group for Wildlife and Open Spaces Habitat Harmony, Inc., has been involved with wildlife and open space issues in the larger Flagstaff area for over seven years. We coordinated scientific input for the Urban Open Spaces Plan which is part of the Regional Plan. During this time we worked with a dozen or more scientists who care deeply about the preservation of wildlife and habitat in the Flagstaff area.
2008 Translocation with One Year Post Release Survival Success Study In the summer of 2008, 195 Gunnison’s prairie dogs were translocated from areas in Flagstaff, AZ that were slated to be poisoned or developed. Habitat Harmony, Inc. in conjunction with Northern Arizona University and financial support from an Arizona Game and Fish Department Heritage Grant used this translocation opportunity to help research the one-year post release survival success and different release techniques for Gunnison’s prairie dogs. We hope this research will aid our understanding of successful translocations for prairie dogs in need of new homes in the future. During the summer of 2009, we attempted to re-trap and identify all the translocated survivors and their pups. Through observations, re-trapping, a PIT tag scanner deployed at the burrow openings, and remote cameras, we identified a total of 63 tagged translocated adult prairie dogs and 84 pups for a total estimated population of 147 prairie dogs one year after the translocation. Furthermore, the prairie dogs dug hundreds of new holes and spread out into the grassland surrounding the release area. An unfortunate discovery of our research is witnessing and documenting the toll human hunting and target shooting may take on prairie dog survival. We recommend additional management actions to limit hunting and protect newly translocated colonies. Our research shows that translocations of prairie dogs can, in fact, provide a valuable conservation tool for rescuing displaced prairie dogs and re-establishing abandoned colonies for a Species of Greatest Conservation Need.
Capture and Release Techniques When prairie dogs are translocated, the best release sites are abandoned burrows. However, due to the scarcity of abandoned prairie dog colonies that are approved for Gunnison's prairie dog translocation, Habitat Harmony researched releasing prairie dogs into man-made burrows. This report also includes information on visual barriers. |
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Click Here to See More Info on the Study Group for Wildlife and Open Spaces
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