- Gunnison's Prairie Dog
Taxobox | name = Gunnison's Prairie Dog
status = LR/lc | status_system = IUCN2.3
trend = unknown
regnum =Animalia
phylum =Chordata
classis =Mammalia
ordo =Rodent ia
familia =Sciuridae
genus = "Cynomys"
species = "C. gunnisoni"
binomial = "Cynomys gunnisoni"
binomial_authority = (Baird,1855 )Gunnison's Prairie Dog ("Cynomys gunnisoni"), is found in the four corners area of North America, primarily living in sagebrush ecosystems. This
prairie dog species hibernates from November through March.Description
The Gunnison's prairie dog is distinct from its cousins. Gunnison's prairie dogs are yellow-tan in color, slightly paler than other prairie dog species, and have a short white-tipped tail [http://www.r6.fws.gov/species/mammals/gunnisonprairiedog/ US Fish and Wildlife Service] .
Conservation Status
The species appears in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, with a status of lower risk/least concern, last assessed in 1996 [ [http://www.iucnredlist.org/search/details.php/42453/summ 2007 IUCN Red List – Search ] ] .
Petitions have been made to protect the Gunnison's prairie dog, but they have been denied by the
United States Fish and Wildlife Service due to insufficient scientific data describing current population trends [http://mountain-prairie.fws.gov/pressrel/06-08.htm US Fish and Wildlife Service Gunnison's Prairie Dog Press Release] . The Fish and Wildlife Service plans on reevaluating their status when more detailed studies become available.References
External links
* [http://jan.ucc.nau.edu/~cns3/ Research into the social and communicative behavior of Gunnison's prairie dogs]
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