Prairie dog plague in Colorado

BOULDER, Colo. -- Bubonic plague has struck a second Boulder County prairie dog colony in what could be the early stage of a massive die-off, officials and biologists say.

Joe Malinowski, a county health official, said his office received confirmation from a state lab Tuesday night that fleas taken from a prairie dog colony on private property near Table Mountain, northeast of Boulder, had tested positive for plague.

Two weeks ago, plague turned up in a colony near Wonderland Lake, in northwest Boulder. Malinowski said it is likely to keep spreading.