The Arizona Game and Fish Department has relocated 94 black-tailed prairie dogs to the Sonoita area. The prairie dogs are from New Mexico.
The black-tailed prairie dogs disappeared in Arizona in the 1960s.
The prairie dogs will now be housed on a 40-acre site on the Sands Ranch which includes 25 artificial burrows.
From the Arizona Game and Fish:
The black-tailed prairie dog formerly inhabited the grasslands of southeastern Arizona. Population declines began in the late 1800s and continued into the mid-1900s, leading to the eventual extirpation of the species from the state. Historically, it was the most widely distributed of the five prairie dog species.
Black-tailed prairie dogs are approximately 15 inches long and weigh 2-3 pounds. These tan animals with black-tipped tails are highly social, living in coteries or family units. Family groups live close together to form larger colonies or towns for predator evasion.
The department will be monitoring the prairie dogs regularly for several months.
Department biologists spent two weeks at Fort Bliss monitoring and capturing the prairie dogs before transporting them overnight to Pima County.
The Arizona Game and Fish Department has been re-establishing black-tailed prairie dogs since 2008.