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barriers and soil conditions which in turn encourages 

 prairie dog colonization. Further, cattle selectively 

 forage on desirable grasses, leading to a reduction in the 

 mix of species. Agricultural lands may be devalued $3-7 per 

 acre by lending institutions depending on the density of 

 prairie dog colonies. 



Poisoning has averaged $12.00 per acre in reoccurring 

 costs because applications of rodenticide are only temporary 

 measures. It has been consistently shown that prairie dogs 

 will increase to pre-poisoning levels within three to five 

 years without the implementation of a range improvement 

 program. The most dramatic example has been on the Pine 

 Ridge Indian Reservation where massive poisoning was 

 conducted in the mid-1980 's only to see a current resurgence 

 in prairie dog numbers. 



Range degradation is primarily related to a lack of 

 funding for improvements, such as fencing, adequate water 

 development and planned grazing management necessary to 

 rotate or limit livestock to prevent overgrazing in certain 

 areas. Degradation is exacerbated when cattle congregate 

 near wetlands and riparian zones (particularly during 

 drought), which also provide important habitat for many 

 wildlife and fish species. 



In summary, the current prairie dog "problem" on 

 western lands is not a simple matter. Several combined 

 factors contribute to the problem: 



* the historic attitude of agricultural producers 

 that prairie dogs are an undesirable part of the 

 ecosystem 



* the heretofore accepted practice of poisoning 

 prairie dogs as a control mechanism has not taken 

 into account the related effects on the prairie 

 ecosystem, particularly on the black-footed ferret 

 and other species which are associated with 

 prairie dogs 



* a reduction of the natural mixed-grass forage and 

 overall health of the prairie ecosystem is due in 

 large part to the lack of adequate water, drought 

 conditions and outdated grazing practices 



* overgrazing of the range creates "bare" spots which 

 enhance prairie dog colonization 



Within recent years, the BIA has been promoting 

 Integrated Natural Resource Management planning on Indian 

 reservations which encourages multiple use management 

 directed at both wildlife and agriculture. However, lack of 

 tribal and BIA funding has impeded progress on this 

 initiative. Only a few reservations have completed planning 

 necessary for this management strategy and fewer have 

 actually implemented the plan. Cheyenne River Reservation 



