Geographic range of the endangered Mexican prairie dog (Cynomys mexicanus)

Abstract

The Mexican prairie dog (Cynomys mexicanus) is an endangered species that is endemic to the northeastern Mexico states of Coahuila, Nuevo León, and San Luis Potosí. We provide descriptions of historical, recent, and current distributions of this species by integrating available distributional information from the literature, museum records, and new field observations. We estimate current, recent, and historical ranges as 478, 768, and 1,255 km2, respectively, indicating the Mexican prairie dog has lost 62% of its historical natural habitat as large and medium-size colonies have been fragmented into numerous small isolated colonies. Seventy-four percent of the current geographical range is in Nuevo Leon (354.7 km2), 24% in Coahuila (112.5 km2), and 2% in San Luis Potosí (9.5 km2). We located 88 active and 6 inactive colonies. Active colonies are larger, less isolated, and better connected than inactive colonies. Size of active colonies is correlated with density of active burrows and an index of connectivity.