Mammals of Konza Prairie

(modified from: McMillan, B.R., D.W. Kaufman, G.A. Kaufman, and R.S. Matlack. 1997. Mammals of Konza Prairie: new observations and an updated species list. The Prairie Naturalist, 29:263-271.)


Order Species Status
Order Didelphimorphia  
Virginia opossum (Didelphis virginiana) Common2
Order Insectivora  
Elliot's short-tailed shrew (Blarina hylophaga) Common3,4,5
Least shrew (Cryptotis parva) Present3,5
Eastern mole (Scalopus aquaticus) Present3
Order Chiroptera  
Big brown bat (Eptesicus fuscus) Present2
Hoary bat (Lasiurus cinereus) Present2
Order Primates  
Human (Homo sapiens) Present2
Order Carnivora  
Coyote (Canis latrans) Common2,6
Domestic dog (Canis lupus) Present2
Red fox (Vulpes vulpes) Present3
Domestic cat (Felis silvestris) Present2
Bobcat (Lynx rufus) Common3,7
Striped skunk (Mephitis mephitis) Common3,7
Long-tailed weasel (Mustela frenata) Present2
Least weasel (Mustela nivalis) Present2,3
Mink (Mustela vison) Present2
American badger (Taxidea taxus) Common3,7
Raccoon (Procyon lotor) Common2,7
Order Artiodactyla
Mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) Occasional2
White-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) Common2,3
American bison (Bos bison) Captive2
Cattle (Bos taurus) Captive2
Order Rodentia  
Woodchuck (Marmota monax) Occasional3,7
Thirteen-lined ground squirrel (Spermophilus tridecemlineatus) Common3,4,8
Fox squirrel (Sciurus niger) Common3,7
American beaver (Castor canadensis) Occasional3,7
Plains pocket gopher (Geomys bursarius) Common2
Hispid pocket mouse (Chaetodipus hispidus) Uncommon3
Meadow jumping mouse (Zapus hudsonius) Present3
House mouse (Mus musculus; introduced) Rare3,9
Prairie vole (Microtus ochrogaster) Common3,4,10
Woodland vole (Microtus pinetorum) Rare3
Southern bog lemming (Synaptomys cooperi) Local3,4,7,10
Eastern woodrat (Neotoma floridana) Common3,11
Deer mouse (Peromyscus maniculatus) Common3,4
White-footed mouse (Peromyscus leucopus) Common3,4,11
Western harvest mouse (Reithrodontomys megalotis) Common3,4
Plains harvest mouse (Reithrodontomys montanus) Rare3,7
Hispid cotton rat (Sigmodon hispidus) Local3,4,12
Order Lagomorpha  
Eastern cottontail (Sylvilagus floridanus) Common3,7

1Definitions for status are: common = usually abundant for the species in appropriate habitat(s) in most years; local = abundant for species in local sites within appropriate habitat(s) in most years; uncommon = low abundance for species in most years even in best habitats on the site; rare = very low abundance across the site but present in most years; occasional = very low abundance for species in best years and absent from site in many years; present = recorded for site but only information available makes it difficult to assign other status; and captive = maintained in captive herds.

2This study.
3Finck et al. 1986.
4Kaufman et al. 1990.
5Clark et al. 1995.
6Brillhart and Kaufman 1994.
7Personal observations by authors
8Clark et al. 1990.
9Kaufman and Kaufman 1990.
10Bixler and Kaufman 1995.
11McMillan and Kaufman 1994.
12Brillhart et al. 1995.



Literature Cited

Bixler, S. H., and D. W. Kaufman. 1995. Prairie voles at low density in ungrazed tallgrass prairie in the Flint Hills region of eastern Kansas. Prairie Nat. 27:33-40.

Brillhart, D. E., and D. W. Kaufman. 1994. Temporal variation in coyote prey in tallgrass prairie of eastern Kansas. Prairie Nat. 26:93-105.

Brillhart, D. E., D. W. Kaufman, and G. A. Kaufman. 1995. Small-mammal use of experimental patches of tallgrass prairie: influence of topographic position and fire history. Pp. 59-65 in Proceedings of the 14th North American Prairie Conference: prairie biodiversity (D. C. Hartnett, ed.). Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS.

Clark, B. K., D. W. Kaufman, G. A. Kaufman, and S. K. Gurtz. 1990. Population ecology of thirteen-lined ground squirrels in ungrazed tallgrass prairie manipulated by fire. Pp. 51-54 in Proceedings of the 12th North American Prairie Conference: recapturing a vanishing heritage (D. D. Smith and C. A. Jacobs, eds.). University of Northern Iowa, Cedar Falls, IA.

Clark, B. K., D. W. Kaufman, G. A. Kaufman, and S. K. Gurtz. 1995. Population ecology of Elliot's short-tailed shrew and least shrew in ungrazed tallgrass prairie manipulated by experimental fire. Pp. 87-92 in Proceedings of the 14th North American Prairie Conference: prairie biodiversity (D. C. Hartnett, ed.). Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS.

Finck, E. J., D. W. Kaufman, G. A. Kaufman, S. K. Gurtz, B. K. Clark, L. J. McLellan, and B. S. Clark. 1986. Mammals of the Konza Prairie Research Natural Area, Kansas. Prairie Nat. 18:153-166.

Kaufman, D. W., E. J. Finck, and G. A. Kaufman. 1990. Small mammals and grassland fires. Pp. 46-80 in Fire in North American tallgrass prairies (S. L. Collins and L. L. Wallace, eds.). Univ. Oklahoma Press, Norman, OK.

Kaufman, D. W., and G. A. Kaufman. 1990. House mice (Mus musculus) in natural and disturbed habitats in Kansas. J. Mammal. 71:428-432.

McMillan, B. R., and D. W. Kaufman. 1994. Differences in use of interspersed woodland and grassland by small mammals in northeastern Kansas. Prairie Nat. 26:107-116.