Females, however, may spend their entire lives in their original coterie. Migration is limited to around three miles and dispersing individuals usually move into established colonies rather than attempting to start a new colony. Provides important habitat for other species Burrowing and grazing activities of prairie dogs benefit vegetation structure, plant composition, nutrients available in soil, soil turnover, soil chemistry, nutrient quality of plants and plant succulence. South Dakota has the largest amount of remaining prairie dog acreage and also has the majority of the remaining few large complexes. Most prairie dog colonies are small and geographically isolated from one another.
Isolated populations are vulnerable to threats and less likely to survive over the long term.
The Utah prairie dog has been listed as a threatened species since 1973. The Mexican prairie dog has been listed as endangered since 1970. At the turn of the century, prairie dog towns covered 100 to 300 million acres. Today, colonies occupy an estimated 800,000 acres. The total number of black-tailed prairie dogs alive today may not be as important to the species' persistence and survival as is the number of remaining colonies, their size and distribution, and their vulnerability to threats.