| burrowing owls, pulex irritans, and plague. | western burrowing owls (athene cunicularia hypugaea) are small, ground-dwelling owls of western north america that frequent prairie dog (cynomys spp.) towns and other grasslands. because they rely on rodent prey and occupy burrows once or concurrently inhabited by fossorial mammals, the owls often harbor fleas. we examined the potential role of fleas found on burrowing owls in plague dynamics by evaluating prevalence of yersinia pestis in fleas collected from burrowing owls and in owl blood. dur ... | 2015 | 26367482 |