Part 3

Sylvilagus audubonii warreni Nelson Desert Cottontail

Specimens examined.--Total, 2: Head of Prater Canyon, MV 7850/507; Far View Ruins, 75974, ad. [Female], non-pregnant, November 8, 1957.

One specimen was shot, while it was sitting near a pile of logs, by J.R. Alcorn by means of a bow and arrow. Although S. audubonii occurs on the Mesa along with S. nuttallii, S. audubonii is the species of the lowlands throughout the western United States at the latitude of Mesa Verde National Park. For example, S. a. warreni (69260) but not S. n. pinetis was obtained along the east side of the Mancos River at 6200 feet elevation (less than 50 yards outside the Park) and the same was true at the same elevation at a place 4-1/2 mi. N of the Park (No. 69259 from 2 mi. E Cortez).

Sylvilagus nuttallii pinetis (J.A. Allen) Nuttall's Cottontail

Specimens examined.--Total, 3: ad. , 69263, skull only, dead on road, 1-3/4 mi. N Park Headquarters, 7275 feet, August 9, 1956; ad. [Female], 69261, no embryos, dead on road, 3/4 mi. S and 1-3/4 mi. W Park Point, 8000 ft, August 8, 1956; ad. , 69262, shot in brushy area on the burn on Wetherill Mesa 2 mi. NNW Rock Springs, 7900 ft., August 24, 1956.

Nuttall's cottontail in Colorado is in general the cottontail of the highlands, and the three localities just mentioned are on the top of the Mesa Verde.

Sciurus aberti mimus Merriam Abert's Squirrel

Specimens examined.--Total, 2: , MV 7872/507, prepared by D. Watson, killed by a car "near" the Park Well on September 24, 1937; [Female] (an unnumbered cased skin only), found dead "near" the Park Well on June 21, 1937.

Since 1934 these squirrels have been observed and recorded each year except in 1938, 1943, 1947, 1953, 1957, and 1958. The 77 reported observations can be grouped as follows: 11 from within a mile of the entrance to the Park, 14 from the North Rim or higher parts of canyons adjacent to it, 38 from Chapin Mesa south of Far View, and 14 not classifiable. The large number of observations on Chapin Mesa, chiefly in the vicinity of Park Headquarters, indicates the presence of more observers rather than more squirrels in this area.

Tamiasciurus hudsonicus fremonti (Audubon and Bachman) Red Squirrel

Specimens examined.--Total, 2: MV 7843/507, Chickaree Draw, Prater Canyon, 1935, C.W. Quaintance and Lloyd White; [Female], 69264, no embryos, 1/4 mi. NNW Middle Well, Prater Canyon, 7600 ft., August 31, 1956.

Red squirrels, or chickarees as they are called in Colorado, are known from only one place on the Mesa Verde, a side canyon on the west side of Prater Canyon above Middle Well. This side canyon has been named Chickaree Draw by C.W. Quaintance, who, with Lloyd White, studied the chickaree there in 1935. Quaintance reported the small colony at 7800 feet elevation in Douglas fir beneath which were found piles of cones from which the seeds had been eaten by the chickarees. On May 29, 1935, White observed a chickaree eating green oak leaves. On June 3, 1935, a nest was found in an old hollow snag up under the rim rock; there were four young squirrels in the nest. At least one nest was in a juniper and was composed mostly of oak leaves and grass. One nest twenty-five feet from the ground in a Douglas fir was composed of oak leaves and finely shredded cedar bark. In August, 1956, I found these squirrels in the same area and I shot one specimen. Other chickarees were seen and heard and the characteristic piles of parts of Douglas fir cones still attest to their presence. On September 1, 1953, D. Watson observed a pair of chickarees in Prater Canyon. The only other specific record in the files at the Park is of two seen in a branch of Soda Canyon in late 1956. Jean Pinkley tells me that chickarees have been observed in 1958 and 1959 at several other localities from Prater Canyon to the hill at the head of Navajo Canyon. The extent to which increased observations indicate an increase in number of chickarees is uncertain, since the amounts of time spent in the field and the percentage of observations recorded are not known.

Marmota flaviventris luteola A.H. Howell Yellow-bellied Marmot

Records are available of observations at 14 different places in the Park and in 19 different years between 1930 and 1960. Approximately two-thirds of the observations have been on Prater Grade or in upper Prater Canyon or in upper Morfield Canyon. On the morning of August 24, 1956, Harold Shepherd and I heard the whistle of an animal that he was certain was a marmot, 2 mi. NNW of Rock Springs at the west rim of Wetherill Mesa. Mr. Shepherd has worked in areas occupied by marmots for years in southwestern Colorado. Wetherill Mesa is the locality farthest west in the Park where marmots are known to occur. They occur as far south as Cliff Palace.

Cynomys gunnisoni zuniensis Hollister Gunnison's Prairie Dog

Specimens examined.--Total, 3: MV 7836/507, Prater Canyon, 7600 ft., C.W. Quaintance and L. White, May 24, 1935; [Female], MV 7847/507, head of Prater Canyon, June 13, 1935, C.W. Quaintance (the skin is on display); MV 7887/507, Prater Canyon, September 1, 1939.

C.W. Quaintance in reports on the results of his work in 1935 included the following information:

On February 20 in Prater Canyon Ranger Markley noticed that prairie dogs were active although about three feet of snow lay on the ground. Between April 15 and May 15 approximately 500 prairie dogs were in Prater Canyon above Lower Well; through field glasses 350 were counted. Young were first noted in Prater Canyon on July 12. Quaintance and Lloyd White had under observation two bulky nests of the red-tailed hawk in the tops of tall Douglas firs in side draws of Prater Canyon. Quaintance found near the rimrock a quarter of a mile from the prairie-dog town the skeletons of two prairie dogs between a sliver of a dead pinyon branch and the branch itself. Another skeleton lay on a dead limb fifteen feet from the ground. A red-tailed hawk once was observed to swoop down, seize a prairie dog and fly down the canyon. The four colonies found in the Park were in Prater Canyon, in Morfield Canyon, in the east fork of School Section Canyon, and in Whites Canyon. The last two were smaller colonies than the first two.

Prairie dogs were observed away from these colonies. On June 20 a young prairie dog ran into a culvert on the Knife Edge Section of the road. Others were observed on the north side of the road, at the head of the east prong of School Section Canyon, on the road west of Park Point, and on the road at the head of Long Canyon five miles from the nearest known colony in the Park. Possibly this last individual came from the Montezuma Valley north of the Park. Mr. Prater, after whom Prater Canyon is named, homesteaded on the Mesa Verde in 1899. He informed Quaintance that prairie dogs were present in Morfield Canyon prior to 1900 but were not in Prater Canyon in 1899. Prater said he drowned out a few that came into Prater Canyon before 1914. In 1942, Chief Ranger Faha wrote in his Annual Animal Census Report that he had interviewed an old time resident (name not noted) who stated that prairie dogs were not present on the Mesa Verde until about 1905 or 1906 and that Helen Morfield, the daughter of Judge Morfield who homesteaded in Morfield Canyon, brought the first prairie dogs on the Mesa Verde. Estimates of the prairie-dog population in the Annual Animal Census Reports for 1935 through 1941 were: 1935--800, 1936--650, 1937--650, 1938--650, 1939--no report, 1940--1500 and increasing, 1941--slight decrease. After 1942 more adequate records were kept by Chief Ranger Wade and other Park Service personnel.

On August 9, 1943, occupied burrows of prairie dogs were found to be thinly scattered down Prater Canyon from the head of the canyon at the Maintenance Camp to a point about one hundred feet below the lower well. The largest concentration was in the vicinity of the upper well near Prater's Cabin. Little new digging that would indicate a spreading population was noticed. Seemingly desirable, but unoccupied, habitat extended at least two miles south of the inhabited area. In Morfield Canyon, burrows were found from a point one hundred yards north of the fence at the south boundary of Section 17, south for a mile and one-half to a point one-third of a mile into Section 29. The greatest concentration was in the vicinity of Morfield Well. South of this point the burrows were found only along the narrow dry sides of the canyon and in sage-covered areas at slightly higher elevations than the rest of the floor of the canyon. Seemingly desirable habitat extended at least three miles to the south and one mile to the north of the occupied area. The report of the study in 1943 concluded with the statement that artificial control by poisoning would be unwise and unnecessary. Requests were being made at that time to exterminate prairie dogs in the Park on the basis of the unproved assumption that prairie dogs move from the Park to surrounding range land where extermination was then being attempted by poisoning.

On August 10, 1944, no occupied burrows were found in Whites Canyon or the east fork of School Section Canyon. A heavy rain on August 9 made accurate count of occupied burrows possible. In Prater Canyon the occupied area extended 200 feet south of the area occupied in 1943. In Morfield Canyon no change had occurred. North of the fence in Morfield Canyon 130 occupied burrows were counted. More than one hole, if judged to be part of the same burrow system, were counted as one. The vegetation within the colony had continued to improve in spite of the large population of prairie dogs.

On August 8 and 14, 1945, although a careful search was made, the only prairie dogs found in Prater Canyon were living in one burrow fifty yards from the Maintenance Camp. In Morfield Canyon the colony had decreased. Occupied burrows were found on the west side of the canyon near the fence and above the well (17 burrows), and below the well on the west side (estimated 30 burrows). The total population in both canyons was estimated to be 100, compared with 800 in the preceding year. The ground-water table was thought to be rising, and vegetation was increasing.

On August 12, 1946, two prairie dogs were observed in Prater Canyon, one near the Maintenance Camp, and the other a mile to the south. In Morfield Canyon 18 occupied burrows were found north of the fence and 36 below the well, in the same two areas occupied in 1945.

On August 12, 1947, two animals were seen at one of the localities occupied a year earlier in Prater Canyon, and three burrows were occupied. In Morfield Canyon 119 occupied burrows were counted. At least 12 dens occupied by badgers were present in 1946, and four in 1947.

On August 9, 1948, no evidence of living prairie dogs was found in Prater Canyon. In Morfield Canyon 45 burrows were counted north of the fence. The grass had been increasing in abundance for several years.

On August 18, 1949, no evidence of living prairie dogs was found in either canyon. In 1951 five prairie dogs were said to have been seen in Prater Canyon in June and July. No other observations have been recorded.

On June 22, 1956, 13 pups and 7 adult prairie dogs were released in an enclosure in Morfield Canyon. Periodic inspections in the summer revealed that the colony was surviving and healthy. By the following spring no prairie dogs remained. Another reintroduction is planned this year (1960).

Both the history of the prairie dogs and the history of the viewpoint of people toward them are interesting. Individual views have ranged from a desire to exterminate all the prairie dogs to a desire to leave them undisturbed by man.