Beneath the meadow in front of you is a maze of tunnels—home to a community of Utah prairie dogs. Prairie dogs are considered a "keystone species” because their burrows sustain meadow habitat for other animals and help water move through the soil. Other animals depend on them for food, and their grazing and digging promote new plant growth. Habitat loss, extermination, disease, and drought led to their listing as an endangered species in 1973. Conservation strategies included their reintroduction to Bryce Canyon in the 1970s and 80s. Only found in southwestern Utah, the park now protects one of their larger populations.

Help us protect these animals. Appreciate them from a distance. Do not feed or approach. Prairie dogs may carry fleas that transmit plague. Fleas can jump up to 10 feet (3 m)!