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Priaire dogs get their policy
  
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By Michele Sample
Douglas County recognizes the importance of the black-tailed prairie dog, and believes that the species has a right to exist on county owned open space and park land.
After months of discussions conducted by a professional facilitator, Cheryl Matthews, director of open space and natural resources for Douglas County, said that on Oct. 10, the Douglas County Open Space and Parks Divisions Prairie Dog Conservation Policy was completed.
Part of the challenge putting this document together was that every member of the committee had different points of view. The facilitator allowed the group to stay on task and listen to each other’s concerns. The group consisted of a rancher landowner, a previous president of a homeowner’s association adjacent to open space, a member of Douglas County Citizens for Wildlife, and a biologist and writer from the Division of Wildlife.
Matthews and a stockholder with the Prairie Preservation Alliance and staff from planning and open space completed the group. Matthews said that if all of the committee members were not able to attend a meeting, they would not get together.
“I think one of the biggest issues to grapple with was that we are there to protect,” Matthews said. “And then properties within urban development. It is hard to let them do their thing, and that took a while to get through to everyone.”
Black-tailed prairie dogs are an important species because of their interconnectedness to other wildlife species. They provide an important food source for numerous predator species. Their burrows provide cover and nesting sites for several mammals, birds, and reptiles.
Prairie dogs in urban and otherwise confined settings have the potential to negatively impact native plant communities by overgrazing these relatively small areas, according to the conservation policy. In these situations, prairie dogs may move onto adjacent private properties, damaging lawns, gardens, pastures and farmland. This expansion onto private properties requires the county to manage the species as outlined in the policy.
The purpose of the policy is to establish a specific framework for the conservation and humane management of prairie dogs on open space. Education and outreach regarding prairie dogs is an important aspect of conserving the species and will be addressed by the county open space and parks division.
Matthews said there is a five-step process to the management options.
“We couldn’t rule out that in some cases, the last resort, we have to manage them,” Matthews said.
Step one would be avoidance in most cases, and the prairie dogs are a natural part of the ecosystem. Another step is to put up barriers, or plant crops with high vegetation, because prairie dogs do not like the high grass.
“It makes them nervous,” Matthews said.
Other steps include relocation or use a form of lethal control, or have the prairie dogs captured and utilized in other suitable wildlife recovery programs.
The county may evaluate the feasibility and effectiveness of innovative management techniques, such as immunocontraceptive vaccines or oral contraceptives, as they become available on the market or through institutions conducting research.
After months of discussions conducted by a professional facilitator, Cheryl Matthews, director of open space and natural resources for Douglas County, said that on Oct. 10, the Douglas County Open Space and Parks Divisions Prairie Dog Conservation Policy was completed.
Part of the challenge putting this document together was that every member of the committee had different points of view. The facilitator allowed the group to stay on task and listen to each other’s concerns. The group consisted of a rancher landowner, a previous president of a homeowner’s association adjacent to open space, a member of Douglas County Citizens for Wildlife, and a biologist and writer from the Division of Wildlife.
Matthews and a stockholder with the Prairie Preservation Alliance and staff from planning and open space completed the group. Matthews said that if all of the committee members were not able to attend a meeting, they would not get together.
“I think one of the biggest issues to grapple with was that we are there to protect,” Matthews said. “And then properties within urban development. It is hard to let them do their thing, and that took a while to get through to everyone.”
Black-tailed prairie dogs are an important species because of their interconnectedness to other wildlife species. They provide an important food source for numerous predator species. Their burrows provide cover and nesting sites for several mammals, birds, and reptiles.
Prairie dogs in urban and otherwise confined settings have the potential to negatively impact native plant communities by overgrazing these relatively small areas, according to the conservation policy. In these situations, prairie dogs may move onto adjacent private properties, damaging lawns, gardens, pastures and farmland. This expansion onto private properties requires the county to manage the species as outlined in the policy.
The purpose of the policy is to establish a specific framework for the conservation and humane management of prairie dogs on open space. Education and outreach regarding prairie dogs is an important aspect of conserving the species and will be addressed by the county open space and parks division.
Matthews said there is a five-step process to the management options.
“We couldn’t rule out that in some cases, the last resort, we have to manage them,” Matthews said.
Step one would be avoidance in most cases, and the prairie dogs are a natural part of the ecosystem. Another step is to put up barriers, or plant crops with high vegetation, because prairie dogs do not like the high grass.
“It makes them nervous,” Matthews said.
Other steps include relocation or use a form of lethal control, or have the prairie dogs captured and utilized in other suitable wildlife recovery programs.
The county may evaluate the feasibility and effectiveness of innovative management techniques, such as immunocontraceptive vaccines or oral contraceptives, as they become available on the market or through institutions conducting research.
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