The social life of black-tailed prairie dogs has been the topic of much study and interest by field naturalists and ecologists. For example, prairie dogs have a vocabulary of about 11 distinct calls and a host of postures and displays. When detecting danger, prairie dogs alert other members of the colony. They make a loud chirk while standing, on two or four legs, or lying prostrate in a burrow entrance. It is something of an evolutionary puzzle why prairie dogs would risk their own skin by drawing the attention of a predator in order to save other members of their town.
Some scientists believe that prairie dogs only mean to warn their close kin.
Another call given by prairie dogs has also attracted the naturalists' attention. From time to time a prairie dog will stand on its hind legs, stretch the body as vertical as possible and throw its front feet high into the air. While doing all this it begins a very loud call, described variously as a yelp, cry, song and a yip. While it is amusing to watch one prairie dog do this, jump-yipping soon spreads through the colony creating a contagious and wild dance. A certain prairie dog behavior has been described as kin recognition, family member identification or brood discrimination.