Although the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources and nongovernment organizations have invested heavily in prairie restoration over the past decade, little effort had been made to evaluate whether insect species that inhabit these projects are also restored to pre-settlement diversity. To evaluate the effect of prairie restoration attempts on insect species diversity, eighty individual red...

The prairie vole (Microtus ochrogaster) is a socially monogamous rodent species that forms a lasting connection between mates, known as a pair bond. The pair bond is primarily characterized by three distinct behaviors: partner preference, selective aggression, and biparental care of the young. The presence of these behaviors in the prairie vole and their absence in closely related non-monogamou...

Black-tailed prairie dog (Cynomys ludovicianus) colonies can become overcrowded, and the colonies, landscape, and people affected by them may benefi t from controlled populations. Contraception is a method that may be useful, particularly where lethal control is inappropriate or illegal. We investigated if oral administration of 20,25-diazacholesterol (DiazaCon®), an inhibitor of cholesterol an...

The white-tailed prairie dog is a spontaneous hibernator that enters an anorexic state followed by torpor in early fall. The black-tailed prairie dog is a facultative hibernator that enters torpor only when deprived offood and water in the winter. The physiological state of hibernation is similar to a Phase II euthermic fast characterized by elevated fat catabolism, increased blood ketone bodie...

Greater prairie-chickens (Tympanuchus cupido pinnatus) are a medium-sized grouse species (800–1000 g; 1.8–2.2 lbs). During spring they gather on communal breeding areas, or leks, where males display and compete for opportunities to mate. Prairie-chicken leks are also called booming grounds because males make a low-frequency, booming vocalization during their displays. Orange air sacs on the sid...

The abundance of plants with extrafloral nectaries was determined for a series of temperate habitats in Nebraska. Mean cover of plants with extrafloral nectaries was 1.3% in riparian forest understory, 1.8% in virgin deciduous forest understory, 0.0% in tall-grass prairie, and 8.3% in sandhill prairie. Sandhills prairie contained distinct communities with different mean cover of plants with ext...

Prairie Ridge Addiction Treatment Services turned to SAMHSA's Treatment Improvement Protocol (TIP) 33, "Treatment for Stimulant Use Disorders," to try to establish more effective practices for their fast-growing population of methamphetamine-addicted clients. Six years later, Prairie Ridge's executive director says that adopting the TIP's client-based treatment philosophy has enhanced the progr...

Aboveground Hemiptera and Orthoptera communities were compared among three native and three restored mesic tallgrass prairies along the Platte River in central Nebraska to assess both the relative success of restored sites and the relationship between insect and plant communities. Hemiptera and Orthoptera were sampled using sweep nets in early June, mid-July, and mid-August 2000. Plant species ...

Grasslands make up the largest vegetative province in North America, and one that has been signifi cantly altered over the past two centuries. The tallgrass prairie of the eastern Great Plains and Midwest has declined to a greater extent than any other ecosystem, primarily due to plowing for cereal grain production. Grassland bird populations have declined at a greater rate and over a wider are...

We characterized the relationship between fleas and their rodent hosts in the presence of prairie dog colonies and compared them to adjacent assemblages away from colonies. We evaluated the rodent-flea relationship by quantifying prevalence, probability of infestation, flea load, and intensity of fleas on rodents. As prairie dog burrows provide refugia for fleas, we hypothesized that prevalence...