Leucocrossuromys

Subgenus Leucocrossuromys
Range
Taxonomic classification
Order:	Rodentia
Suborder:	Sciuromorpha
Family:	Sciuridae
Subfamily:	Xerinae
Tribe:	Marmotini
Genus:	Cynomys

Species in the United States

• 

  Gunnison's Prairie Dog (Cynomys gunnisoni) observed by Cathy Pasterczyk in Taos, New Mexico.

• 

  White-tailed Prairie Dog (Cynomys leucurus) observed by Liam Pentangelo in Jackson County, Colorado.

• 

  Utah Prairie Dog (Cynomys parvidens) observed by Creed Clayton in southern Utah.

Key to the species

Key to the prairie dogs

Differences between subgenera Cynomys and Leucocrossuromys

From Hoogland (1996): "Hollister (1916) grouped black-tailed prairie dogs together with Mexican prairie dogs into the subgenus Cynomys. Hollister (1916; see also Clark et al., 1971; Pizzimenti, 1975) grouped the other three species, all with shorter (40-65 mm), white- or gray-tipped tails, into the subgenus Leucocrossuromys. Salient differences between the two subgenera include the following: Leucocrossuromys hibernate each year, but Cynomys do not; Leucocrossuromys live at altitudes of 1,500-3,000 m above sea level, but Cynomys live at altitudes of 1,300-2,000 m; shrubs and herbs within colonies of Leucocrossuromys are commonly 0.5 m high or taller, but vegetation with colonies of Cynomys is rarely taller than 0.3 m (Hollister, 1916; Hoogland, 1995; Pizzimenti, 1975). Further, Leucocrossuromys have smaller molar teeth and thinner jugal bones than do Cynomys (Clark et al., 1971; Hollister, 1916; Pizzimenti, 1975). Finally, the territorial and anti predator calls of black-tailed and Mexican prairie dogs are practically identical, but differ markedly from the territorial and antipredator calls of, Gunnison's, white-tailed, and Utah prairie dogs (Clark, 1977; Hoogland, 1995, 1996; Pizzimenti and McCleneghan, 1974; Rayor, 1988; Slobodchikoff et al., 1991; Waring, 1970; Wright-Smith, 1978)."

Range maps

• 

  Gunnison's Prairie Dog (Cynomys gunnisoni)

• 

  White-tailed Prairie Dog (Cynomys leucurus)

• 

  Utah Prairie Dog (Cynomys parvidens)

Available taxon pages

The following species are available on WhiskerWiki for this subgenus:

• Cynomys gunnisoni
• Cynomys leucurus
• Cynomys parvidens

References

Clark TW, Hoffmann RS, Nadler CF. 1971. Cynomys leucurus. Mammalian Species (7):1-4.

Hollister N. 1916. A systematic account of the prairie dogs. North American Fauna 40:1-37.

Hoogland JL. 1995. The black-tailed prairie dog: social life of a burrowing mammal. The University of Chicago Press, Chicago, Illinois, 557 pp.

Hoogland JL. 1996. Cynomys ludovicianus. Mammalian species (535):1-10.

Hoogland JL. 1996. Why do Gunnison's prairie dogs give anti-predator calls? Animal Behaviour 51:871-880.

Pizzimenti JJ. 1975. Evolution of the prairie dog genus Cynomys. Occasional papers of the Museum of Natural History, University of Kansas, 39:1-73.

Pizzimenti JJ, McCleneghan LR. 1974. Reproduction, growth and development, and behavior in the Mexican prairie dog, Cynomys mexicanus (Merriam). American Midland Naturalist 92:130-145.

Rayor LS. 1988. Social organization and space-use in Gunnison's prairie dog. Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology 22:69-78.

Slobodchikoff CN, Kiriazis J, Fischer C, Creef E. 1991. Semantic information distinguishing individual predators in the alarm calls of Gunnison's prairie dogs. Animal Behaviour 42(5):713-719.

Waring GH. 1970. Sound communications of black-tailed, white-tailed, and Gunnison's prairie dogs. American Midland Naturalist 83:167-185.

Wright-Smith MA. 1978. The ecology and social organization of Cynomys parvidens (Utah prairie dog) in south central Utah. M.S. thesis, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana, 44 pp.