Prairie dogs are not dogs at all but ground dwelling squirrels, whose name is derived from their dog-like barking calls. The five species are native to the grasslands and prairies of North America. These very social rodents live in often enormous, but well structured, colonies called towns, all sharing a complex system of underground burrows. When a predator approaches, alarm calls are emitted by sentries who perch on mounds of earth. Different calls are used to identifiy different types of predator.

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