THE 
AMERICAN NATURALIST. 
Vor. xii. — APRIL, 1878. — No. 4. 
ra Dl Parc s tate aE Ry Re oh Ne pea Re ae ly aa ae 
THE PRAIRIE DOG, OWL AND RATTLESNAKE. 
į BYS. W. WILLISTON. 
ye singular and amusing stories have been, and still are, 
accepted by many of the amicable relationship existing be- 
tween the prairie dog, burrowing owl and rattlesnake. It is not 
_ within the province of the present article to repeat them, for they 
are familiar to every school boy. Many of their habits, however, 
= are yet little understood, and I shall endeavor to give the results 
of several years observation on the plains and in the mountains. 
The prairie dog (Cynomys ludovicianus) is widely extended 
: _ through nearly all the Rocky Mountain region of the United 
_ States, and seems to thrive equally well in the bleak regions of the 
: l Upper Yellowstone, or in the fervid tableau of Central Mexico. 
_ Inthe rich, fertile lands of Central Kansas, they sometimes be- 
= come disagreeable nuisances to the farmers, making sad havoc 
= among the fields of growing grain. In the dry, scorched deserts 
_ Of Southern Colorado, I have seen the villages where one would 
almost suppose the simplest forms of animal life were incapable 
of being supported. In the cold, bleak Laramie plains, where but ` 
~ little vegetation save the sage brush can exist, and where for more 
_ than six months in the year they seldom dare expose themselves 
_ to the bitter winds, they thrive in countless numbers. They are, 
) y however, provident little fellows, and literally make hay while the 
Sun shines! Late in the summer one will frequently meet bur- 
rows, around the entrance of which, for some distance, the grass 
has been neatly mown, and left to cure. Were he to visit any of 
_ them a day or two later, he would find the hay all cleanly re- 
moved. In a few instances I have surprised the inhabitants car- 
tying the nicely preserved hay into their dwellings. As their 
VOL. XIL—NO. IV. 15 
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