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Black-tailed prairie dog movement and bait uptake data from 2013-2017 in Montana

Published by U.S. Geological Survey | Department of the Interior | Metadata Last Checked: January 27, 2026 | Last Modified: 2021-11-16T00:00:00Z
Oral sylvatic plague vaccine baits (SPV) and placebo baits, each containing Rhodamine B dye biomarker, were distributed once annually from 2013-2016 on treated and non-treated paired plots from 2013-2016. Black-tailed prairie dogs (BTPD) were live-trapped and permanently marked with passive integrated transponders and ear tags on 4 pairs of plots each year from 2013-2017 to provide capture/recapture data. Capture locations were recorded using global positioning systems. Hair and whisker samples were pulled from each prairie dog to assess bait uptake (i.e. consumption) using a florescent microscope to inspect the samples for Rhodamine B florescence. The first data set (CMR_MOVEMENT_DATA.csv) lists distances (meters) between capture locations from a single prairie dog within a given year, with the data limited to prairie dogs with 2 or more capture locations (one distance measurement per pair of 2 locations per year). The second data set (CMR_BAIT_UPTAKE.csv) lists bait uptake outcomes for individual prairie dogs each year. Funding was provided through the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, multiple USGS sources, grants from the Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies, Montana Fish Wildlife and Parks and World Wildlife Fund.

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