Plucky: A prairie dog squares up to an American bison in the Witchita Mountains Wildlife Refuge in OklahomaCaught in an unlikely showdown with a giant bison, this plucky prairie dog might be best advised to pick on someone his own size.
The cheeky rodent was pictured taking part in an apparent staring battle with the beast in a prairie dog colony – known as a ‘town’ – in the Witchita Mountains Wildlife Refuge, in Oklahoma.
Black-tailed prairie dogs are just 12-16 inches long and weigh between one and three pounds.
American bison, also called American buffalo, can tower at six feet six inches high, 10 feet long, and can weigh a staggering 2,500 pounds.
Outnumbered: The prairie dog cuts a lonely figure among the bison, which can weigh up to 2,500 pounds
Black-tailed prairie dogs are just 12-16 inches long and weigh between one and three poundsBut despite being shockingly smaller than its huge hairy nemesis, the prairie dog seemed happy to stand its ground.
Photography partners David Roberts, who works in the Herpetology and Graphics departments of Dallas Zoo, and David Schleser, a former dentist and curator of the Dallas Aquarium, often venture out into the wilderness on biology and photography projects.
Both from Texas, they lead eco-tourism expeditions to places like the Peruvian Amazon with their photographs being used in several books, field guides, and other publications.
Roberts said: 'Bison often visit prairie dog towns because they excavate large amounts of soil to the surface.
'Bison like to roll in the dust because the dirt helps rid them of parasites, and it just feels good.
'It makes for good opportunities to observe the two species together and sometimes running into each other, like in our photo.'
source: dailymail
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