Best Practices and New Tools to Monitor Prairie Dog Populations for Black Footed Ferret Recovery

Research Location: Los Animas, Colorado and Fort Belknap, Montana
Conservation Partners: World Wildlife Fund

Faculty Mentors

Dr. Sapana Lohani, Dr. John Swaddle, and Dr. Heather Broughton

Project Description

Black-footed ferrets (BFF) are one of North America’s most endangered terrestrial mammals and an important predator in prairie ecosystems of the American West. Their recovery depends on healthy populations of black-tailed prairie dogs, their primary prey species and a critical ecosystem engineer whose burrow systems shape prairie habitat. Yet prairie dog populations remain threatened by sylvatic plague, eradication associated with livestock production, and habitat loss from urban expansion. As a result, effective monitoring of prairie dog populations is essential to understanding where conditions can support BFF recovery.

A key conservation need is to identify efficient, scalable, and reliable methods for monitoring prairie dog populations and density across diverse landscapes. This project will explore how acoustic monitoring, artificial intelligence, and remote-sensing imagery can complement existing approaches to improve the detection, mapping, and assessment of prairie dog colonies. Students will investigate which tools and combinations of methods provide useful information on prairie dog abundance, distribution, and habitat conditions, and how their effectiveness varies across environmental and landscape contexts.

William & Mary students will test and compare these approaches at two field sites—the Southern Plains Land Trust in Las Animas, Colorado, and Fort Belknap in Montana. By evaluating methods across contrasting sites, students will help identify research and monitoring practices that are most effective, transferable, and practical for conservation partners.

Skills and Prereqs

GIS is required for at least one of the students.

Travel

Travel for this project will be to two sites in Las Animas, Colorado and to Fort Belknap, Montana. The fieldwork will require camping or staying in cabins in a remote setting (few restaurants, small grocery stores, etc). The fieldwork will require hiking on variable terrain for extended periods mapping prairie dog colonies and testing field methods. It requires flexible students who are willing to go with the flow and like spending time outdoors.

Students will be required to take the van certification training and will need to drive on gravel roads.

Notes for Applicants

This project is a good fit for students interested in fieldwork, wildlife biology, and exploring innovative tools for conservation. This is a good fit for students with experience camping and hiking for extended periods.

Number of students

Two

Project ID - Format

23-011-23-27- CRP Year

Interested in this project?

Review the CRP application requirements and submit your application by October 25, 2026.