W ildlife is all around us; however, animals are usually elusive. Dawn and dusk are the best times to see many species of wildlife. Timing, patience, and luck can yield fascinating glimpses at the lives of our wild neighbors.
”The wildlife-viewing event at Rogers Lake is a great opportunity to get away from the noise and hubbub of our modern lives for a moment, and experience the quiet and wonder of nature.
One of the species we’re likely to see is Gunnison’s prairie dogs. These fascinating rodents live in societies and have many incredible aspects to their lives and behavior. When they emerge from their underground burrows to play and eat, some animals keep watch for potential dangers, and if one is spotted, the prairie dog gives a bark.
This is interesting because it is an apparent display of altruism among animals: an individual risking itself for the good of the community. The barks themselves are also fascinating!
”Researchers have discovered that prairie dogs have different barks to identify different predators and convey other information.
They even use adjectives. Prairie dogs were found to have different barks for different kinds of dogs, for a human with a yellow coat, and for a human with a yellow coat and a gun, for example. All of this information is conveyed in barks that last one-tenth of a second. They’re also able to be flexible in the use of their barks in order to describe unfamiliar things.
”This raises the question of whether humans are the only species with a spoken language.
Prairie dogs are also considered a “keystone species:” one that has an outsized effect on its ecosystem compared to its numbers. Prairie dogs dig holes, which aerate the soil, distribute seeds, and provide homes for other animals. They also alter the structure of aboveground vegetation.
Prairie dogs are not the only species that we might see at the Rogers Lake wildlife viewing event; also possible are elk, deer, coyotes, frogs, birds, and who knows what else. You never know what you’ll see until you go out and look!
Join the Festival of Science on Sept. 18, 6 p.m. at Roger’s Lake for Wildlife and Sunset Viewing!
Board member, Adam Marsh, and lead paleontologist at Petrified National Forest, works with a team of scientists to uncover an approximately 300 million-year-old fossil skeleton discovered at Canyonlands National Park in Utah (June 2024)