Prairie Dogs: Communication and Community in an Animal SocietyConstantine Slobodchikoff and colleagues synthesize the results of their long-running study of Gunnison’s prairie dogs (Cynomys gunnisoni), one of the keystone species of the short-grass prairie ecosystem. They set their research in the context of the biology of the five Cynomys species found in the United States and Mexico, and detail their investigation into the prairie dogs’ sophisticated system of barks, yips, and chirps, which Slobodchikoff argues represents a referential communication capable of fine distinctions among predators. |
Contents
Prairie Dogs and the Big Picture | 1 |
The Life of Prairie Dogs | 10 |
The Social Behavior of Prairie Dogs | 43 |
Communication | 65 |
Population Biology of Prairie Dogs | 93 |
The Ecology of Prairie Dogs | 113 |
How Much Is a Prairie Dog Worth? | 147 |