Black-tailed prairie dogs function as wildlife managers on the prairie, intricately connected to numerous plant and animal species and playing a key role in the prairie’s health and stability. Their eating habits alter vegetation and attract bison, elk, pronghorn antelope, and deer to graze on tender new shoots in their towns. Their burrows provide shelter for insects, amphibians, reptiles, small mammals, and even burrowing owls, while their towns also draw coyotes, badgers, hawks, and eagles. When predators arrive, prairie dogs stop their social chattering and sound an alarm that reminded pioneers of barking dogs. Prairie dog burrows slope downward about ten feet, with the first chamber serving as a listening post and turnaround and other chambers serving as living quarters, nest, and toilet. Constant nibbling by prairie dogs rejuvenates grasses such as blue grama and allows forbs, or broad-leafed plants, to grow, attracting pronghorn antelope to the forbs and bison to the new grasses. Meadowlarks and other birds feed on insects and nest in the grasses, while hawks and coyotes patrol for prey, and badgers, prairie voles, and thirteen-lined ground squirrels build nests in deserted burrows. Among the rarest predators of prairie dogs is the black-footed ferret.