Estimated read time: Less than a minute
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
CEDAR CITY — A small female prairie dog is wrapped like a burrito in a specially-crafted bag — just her nose pokes out. She'll be set loose in her new home soon, but first experts will weigh her, place a metal tag on her ear and give her a treat.
Multiple traps were set on a 20-acre parcel destined for new development, and staff from the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources hoped to capture, treat and release as many prairie dogs living there as possible, Utah prairie dog recovery biologist Barbara Sugarman said.
A group of field technicians and biologists walked the property, collecting traps and looking for signs of prairie dogs. In each cage, a small amount of peanut butter was placed to entice the rodents to enter the traps, Sugarman said.
The division keeps track of prairie dog colonies by conducting regular surveys, as Cedar City News previously reported.
