Ground squirrels are taking over a North Dakota city and officials are not amused

MINOT, N.D. — The Richardson’s ground squirrel weighs less than a pound, is about a foot long and is native to the northern Plains

MINOT, N.D. — The Richardson’s ground squirrel weighs less than a pound, is about a foot long and is native to the northern Plains.

The little creature also is a ferocious tunneler, and it’s exasperating the people of Minot, North Dakota, where it’s burrowing everywhere from vacant lots to the middle of town, and growing more plentiful over the past two decades.

Now North Dakota’s fourth-largest city is fighting back, but even the pest control guy leading the charge acknowledges that it will be difficult to turn the tide against the rodent.

Joshua Herman said fighting the squirrels is akin to “one guy standing against a massive storm.”

“If I’m trapping but my neighbor isn’t, well then, we’re really not going to get anywhere with it, long-term,” Herman said.