Squeaky killers of a touching appearance (7 photos + 1 video)

Appearances are deceptive. Life has probably proven this axiom to almost everyone more than once. But in the animal world this rule also applies. And not everyone who looks cute and fluffy actually is.





Prairie dogs are representatives of squirrels with all that it implies in the form of a touching and even cuddly appearance. The animals are typical inhabitants of the prairies. They are distinguished by scrupulousness and accuracy and equip complex underground systems with storage rooms, bedrooms, children's rooms and even delivery rooms.



Quite well-fed (up to 1.5 kg) and large (up to 40 cm) plump ones are loved by predators of all stripes. Therefore, in the process of evolution, they grew a fur coat, which makes the dogs invisible on the scorched earth.



If outwardly the animals can be confused with other similar representatives of the local fauna, then the sounds that prairie dogs make are unique. Animals communicate with each other using a specific whistle, reminiscent of the whining of small puppies. In fact, he determined the name of the species.





Dogs love to eat, but due to the threat of attack by predators, they do not stray far from their burrows, methodically eating vegetation, filling their bellies, improving visibility and turning the territory into an even larger steppe.

The insidious gentleman



It seems that rodents are the standard of a pacifist. They delight themselves with flowers, herbs, all kinds of seeds and nuts. They can, however, imprison a butterfly and a flower together, or snatch up a sluggish booger. But this is solely to replenish protein in the body.

Zoologists watched with half an eye the behavior of predictable fluffies. It seems that everything is clear with them. But the attention of researchers was attracted by a case in 2007.

Several meadowmen gathered around the carcass of a fellow tribesman. It looked as if they were saying goodbye to the deceased and showing grief. But upon closer examination, it turned out that the corpse belonged to a gopher.



Further observation yielded unexpected results: it turned out that the cute chubby ones, having risen from hibernation, begin to cold-bloodedly gnaw on the gophers encroaching on the tender May grass. They say that all sorts of people walk around here, and then the food disappears.

The carcasses of the squeaking killers are left in a visible place as a warning to other starving people. They say this will happen to everyone. What is noteworthy is that there is no single system in the behavior of prairie dogs. One representative of the commune may be content with one gopher a month, while another gnaws on a dozen a day.



Ladies do not lag behind their men in the deadly race. And the offspring growing up in a bloodthirsty family, which is noteworthy, are healthier and stronger compared to kids raised by peace-loving parents.



So in the fight for survival, all means are good. And you even have to let your dark side out. However, prairie dog lovers (the animals are highly domesticated) took this information calmly. After all, at home, pets are fed, as they say, from the belly. And they don’t need to go on the warpath. But this is not certain, because although not a single case of a dog attacking its owner has been recorded, such a possibility cannot be completely ruled out.