Plague found in Badlands area prairie dogs, NPS says

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. ( KELO ) — The plague has been confirmed in prairie dogs in the Badlands National Park, Buffalo Gap National Grassland, and the greater Conata-Badlands ecosystem, according to the National Park Service and U.S. Forest Service.

The plague — “a non-native bacterial disease that occurs in rodents and their fleas throughout the western U.S.,” according to NPS — was confirmed from tests done in late May.

“The issue was discovered last week when three deceased prairie dogs were discovered above ground,” Meredith Mingledorff of the NPS said in an email to Nexstar’s KELO.

Once Eric Veach, the superintendent of Badlands National Park, learned of the plague, “he and his team immediately took action to inform the public to reduce future risk to park visitors,” Mingledorff said.

The NPS, U.S. Fish and Wildlife and U.S. Forest Service are working to determine how many prairie dogs may have died from the plague, Mingledorff said.

“Because the prairie dog colonies live and burrow underground, an estimate of effected animals is unknown at this time,” Mingledorff said in the email.

In response to the plague, NPS, the U.S. Forest Service,and conservation partners are applying emergency flea control agents to stop the spread, according to the release. They are also monitoring for plague activity in the Conata-Badlands area.

NPS has posted signs for visitors to the South Dakota national park, alerting them of the situation and offering safety and risk reduction tips. That guidance includes avoiding contact with rodents and their burrows, wearing insect repellent and long pants while outdoors, and seeking medical care if you begin experiencing signs or symptoms of plague.

While humans can get the plague, their risk is low, according to officials. The same can’t be said for the endangered black-footed ferrets that call the Badlands area home. They, along with the prairie dogs, may be at the greatest risk from plague.

The Conata Basin has the largest black-footed ferret population in the world, Travis Livieri said in April. Livieri is a biologist with the Prairie Wildlife Research organization, a non-profit working with federal agencies and others to restore the black-foot ferret population.

The ferrets are one of the most endangered mammals in the world. When the plague infected mammals in the Conata Basin in 2009, it killed more than 80% of the black-footed ferret population, a news release from the NPS said.

The black-footed ferret depends on the prairie dog. Ferrets will often use an abandoned prairie dog burrow as a home. According to NPS, prairie dogs make up about 90% of a black-footed ferret’s food. A ferret eats a prairie dog about every three days, while the average ferret family will need about 250 prairie dogs a year, NPS explains.

In February, a case of human plague was confirmed in Oregon. The person was believed to have been infected by their pet cat, and both were able to receive the necessary treatment.

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