- The endangered black-footed ferret is a member of the weasel family.
- It is the only ferret who lives in north america.
- It's 6 inches tall.
- 1.5-2.5 lbs; males are slightly larger than females.
- Black footed ferrets can live up to 3-4 years in the wild, 7-8 years in captivity.
- The domestic ferret is a different species of European origin, the other group of white weasel. and has been domesticated for hundreds of years.
- It can be kept as a home domestic pet and it currently a trend in china!
- It has a tan body with black legs and feet, a black tip on the tail and a black mask.
- It has short legs with large front paws and claws developed for digging.
- Its large skull and strong jaw and teeth are adapted for eating meat. Which means it's a carnivore.
The ferrets are carnivores, thus they feed on animals such as:
- Prairie dogs. (make up 90% of a black-footed ferret's diet)
- A ferret may eat over 100 prairie dogs in one year.
- Black-footed ferrets are also known to eat ground squirrels.
- small rodents, rabbits and birds.
The breeding habits and it's habitats:
- They are usually found on shortgrass and midgrass.
- Anywhere that is close in association with prairies dogs, which is their main diet.
- The ferret lives in prairie dog colonies and spends most of its time underground in prairie dog burrows.
- The black footed ferret only spends a few minutes above ground each day.
- It burrows to sleep, catches it food, avoids predators like wild foxes and harsh weather.
- The black footed ferret does not hibernate, but in winter, the amount of time it is active decreases substantially.
- It's secretive and primarily nocturnal.
The female black-footed ferret usually bears 3 - 4 young per litter. The young emerge from the burrow in July and leave their mother in September or October. The black-footed ferret is solitary, except during the breeding season, and males apparently do not help to rear the young.
Why is the black footed ferrets endangered?
- Killing of prey.
- Massive hunting and poisoning campaigns against the prairie dog, its the black footed ferrets main food source, caused the ferret to decline.
- Since the pioneers arrived on the Great Plains, ranchers and farmers have conducted an extensive campaign to get rid of prairie dogs, which were considered pests.
- Habitat loss.
Crowding wildlife into smaller islands of habitat causes inbreeding.
The lowered immune responses of inbred animals increases the likelihood of epidemic disease.
In 1984, an outbreak of canine distemper brought by domestic dogs and coyotes devastated the already-precarious ferret population
By 1985, there were just 10 known black-footed ferrets in the wild
What are the current conservation efforts?
- The Wyoming Department of Game and Fish coordinates the Species Survival Plan (SSP) for black-footed ferrets. Captive breeding populations are maintained at the Sybille Wildlife Research Station in Wyoming and several zoos.
- After the black-footed ferret population was decimated by disease, biologists determined that the remaining wild ferrets were not a viable breeding population.
- The last 12 ferrets were captured and combined with 6 ferrets already in captivity to bring the world total to 18 ferrets, all in captivity, in 1987.
- Defenders is working toward black-footed ferret recovery in the field in many different ways, including working with public land agencies, private landowners, and Native American tribes to reintroduce black-footed ferrets in as many viable locations as possible.
What can we do to conserve them?
- Help black-footed ferrets and other wildlife by adopting an animal at our Wildlife Adoption Center.
- Take Action for Wildlife at our Wildlife Action Center.
- The black-footed ferret is one of the world's rarest mammals.
- Baby ferrets are called "kits."
- They do not appear to be numerous in any part of their range and little is known concerning their habits.
- The ferret's long slender body allows it to slip down burrows to find its prey while they sleep. This reduces the ferret's risk of injury when attacking prey the same size as itself.
