WildEarth Guardians

Monday, January 29, 2007
New Twist on Groundhog Day Is Celebrated: February 2 Declared Prairie Dog Day throughout the West

For the past four years conservation organizations, led by WildEarth Guardians, have been giving Punxsutawney Phil's western cousins their due by making February 2nd a day to celebrate prairie dogs.
Contact: WildEarth Guardians

Denver, CO - Each February 2nd, our nation is fascinated with the antics of groundhogs. From Maine to California, the annual prediction of Punxsutawney Phil is anxiously anticipated will the groundhog see his shadow this year, foretelling that winter will last another six weeks, or not? For the past four years conservation organizations, led by WildEarth Guardians, have been giving Punxsutawney Phil’s western cousins their due by making February 2nd a day to celebrate prairie dogs.

Last year the Santa Fe, NM City Council and Mayor Martin Chavez of Albuquerque, NM officially declared February 2nd Prairie Dog Day.

This year, Boulder, CO Mayor Mark Ruzzin and the Lakewood, CO City Council are helping their towns celebrate this new and growing tradition in the West. Boulder and Lakewood both issued proclamations declaring February 2nd, 2007 Prairie Dog Day, and pledged to honor the importance of this Western icon of the prairie and mountain grasslands.

Just as the Groundhog predicts the duration of winter, the West’s ‘groundhog’ the prairie dog foretells the future of a community of wildlife dependent on prairie dogs for food and for the habitat they create, said Dr. Lauren McCain, Deserts and Grasslands Program Director at WildEarth Guardians’ Denver office.

Several species, such as the black-footed ferret, mountain plover, swift fox, ferruginous hawk, and burrowing owl are endangered or declining due to a 98-99% reduction in prairie dog acreage in the Great Plains. Prairie dog towns are also drawing increasing attention from the public because of the great opportunity they provide to view wildlife. Research over the past 20 years has also revealed that prairie dogs may have the most complex communication system in the animal kingdom.

The new Prairie Dog Day holiday is catching on. Along with the proclamations by cities in New Mexico and Colorado, this year local schools and communities are getting into the act. WildEarth Guardians along with the Jefferson County Open School, the Prairie Dog Coalition, Prairie Dog Specialists, and Jews of the Earth are visiting schools in the weeks leading up to and following February 2nd to teach hundreds of elementary and high school students about prairie dogs and their wildlife communities.

Kids love learning about prairie dogs, said Judith Miller Smith, teacher at the Jefferson County Open School. We have tailored our activities to meet Colorado state educational standards. Focusing on prairie dogs is a fantastic way for students to learn about the food chain and how ecosystems work.

WildEarth Guardians, Jefferson County Open School, and the other groups will cap off their Prairie Dog Day celebration with a party and press conference at the Stone House on the Bear Creek Greenbelt in Lakewood, CO.

In addition, WildEarth Guardians has issued a Video News Release for Prairie Dog Day. The video includes both inspiring footage of prairie dogs and prairie landscapes and shocking footage of the threats these creatures face as well as footage of WildEarth Guardians’ educational outreach and interviews with scientists and experts. To download and use the video in your broadcast, visit www.fguardians.org.

To request a DVD copy of the video, contact Rosie Brandenberger at rosie@fguardians.org or 505-988-9126 x155.

Watch the Prairie Dog Day video