North Dakota

In July 2019 I spent a night North Dakota mainly so we could say we had been to North Dakota. But I had found some video on youtube of both Northern Flying Squirrels and Prairie Voles near the  town of Grand Forks. I got in touch with Carl Barrentine – the guy who shot the videos – who gave me some pointers and also connected me with Bob Seabloom a local mammalogist. Despite their advice on where to look I struck out with both species.

During a couple of hours thermal scoping among large trees near the university campus and in Riverside Park we could not find any flying squirrels.  And the traps I set in fallow fields just south of Kelly’s Slough NWR caught nothing other than a lone Deer Mouse: Carl had filmed his Prairie Voles around here.

In June 2022 Greg Greer let me know about Black-tailed Prarie Dogs in  Theodore National Park.

There are a number of black-tailed prairie-dog towns within the park and one in particular is exceptional in allowing wonderful photography opportunities.  It is the Old East Entrance, which is accessed from the South Entrance of the Park.  The trail to the Old East Gate goes through the middle of the prairie-dog town and many of the dogs in that town are not shy of people.  In addition, during the first week of June, we observed many newly weaned young as they first appeared above ground.  The hike to the Old Entrance Gate is .4 miles, so .8 miles round-trip. Very level hiking.  We were there Saturday, June 4, 2022. The following day was a rainy day and we checked two prairie-dog towns and no prairie-dogs were observed.