The Black-Footed Ferret by Amanda Braga

The Black-footed Ferret 

(Mustela nigripes)

Amanda Braga BIO 227 Fall 2017

Description and Ecology:

The Black-footed ferret is a fairly small carnivorous mammal that is a member of the weasel family (Mustelidae). They typically weigh between 1.4 and 2.5 pounds and are 18-24 inches in length. Their name comes from their black feet, but they also have black on the tip of their tail, as well as a black mask around their eyes. The rest of their fur is light tan with white markings. They are long and thin with short legs and fairly large ears for their body size. Black-footed ferrets live and raise their young in prairie dog burrows. Their diet consists of mostly prairie dogs, and occasionally other small rodents like mice or rabbits. They are nocturnal, spending nearly 21 hours a day sleeping, and hunting at night. They are mostly solitary animals, except for when they are breeding or raising litters. Unlike other animals in the Mustelid family, this species is a specialist species with a low reproductive rate. 

Geographic and Population Changes:

It is thought that about 1-2 million years ago the black-footed ferret entered North America from Siberia, so the species is endemic to North America. Their location depends predominantly on prairie dogs, as they rely on them for food, as well as use their burrows for shelter. The historical habitat of the prairie dogs suggests that the ferrets occupied about 100 million acres of intermountain and prairie grasslands spanning from Canada to Mexico. In 2008 a geographic information system concluded that historically, 85 percent of all black-footed ferrets occurred in black-tailed prairie dog habitat, 8 percent in Gunnison's prairie dog habitat, and 7 percent in white-tailed prairie dog habitat.

Between the late 1800s to about 1960 prairie dog habitats and populations, and therefore black-footed ferret populations, declined due to habitat destruction, poisoning, and disease. It was extremely rare to find a ferret until a small population was discovered in Mellette County, South Dakota in 1964. These ferrets were captured, but the last captive ferret died in 1979, when the ferrets were named extinct. However, another population was found near Meeteetse, Wyoming and these ferrets were captured and used to initiate a captive breeding program. Black-footed ferrets from this program have been reintroduced in several states.

Listing Date and Type of Listing:

The black-footed ferret was listed as endangered in 1967. The original recovery plan was approved in 1978, the first revision was approved in 1988, and the second revision was approved on November 7, 2013. It is still listed as endangered today.

Cause of Listing and Main Threats to its Continued Existence:

Due to their dependence on prairie dogs, the decline of prairie dogs led to the decline of the black-footed ferrets, as it is estimated that it takes 20 prairie dogs to support the survival of one ferret. There are three main reasons their populations declined: 1. Beginning in the 1800's, much of their native range was converted to cropland. 2. In the early 1900's, poisoning of prairie dogs began to reduce their competition with domestic livestock for forage. 3. In the 1930's, prairie dogs and ferrets were first affected by the exotic disease sylvatic plague. These three things led to a considerable loss of prairie dogs which led to an even bigger loss of ferrets. Although Climate Change has not directly affected the population of the black-footed ferret yet, it is likely that their populations and habitats will be affected in some way. There is also a strong relationship between increased temperatures and increased plague outbreaks, which would have a negative impact on the ferrets, as disease is one of the main reasons they are endangered. 

Description of Recovery Plan:

A recovery plan for the black-footed ferret was originally approved in 1978, however the second revision was approved in 2013 and it's goals are as follows.

The two main goals of the recovery plan are to recover the black-footed ferret to the status of threatened, which is called "downlisting"; and to eventually remove them from the list of Threatened or Endangered species, which is called "delisting." It is thought that through aggressive reintroduction efforts as well as continuous conservation, downlisting could be achieved as early as 2023 and delisting in 2043 or even earlier, if six new reintroduction sites were initiated every year for the next ten years. The plans will address the main threats to the species, as well as implement captive breeding programs in order to expand the species. 

In order to successfully downlist and eventually delist the species, a certain criteria must be met. This criteria includes breeding the ferrets until they reach a certain population size and making sure their populations are distributed throughout the states within their historical range. It also includes maintaining a certain amount of habitat for at least years, as well as ensuring that once these goals are met, a management plan is implemented to ensure the species is not put back on the threatened or endangered list. 

What can you do?

There are several ways you can help the black-footed ferret, as humans have already had a large impact in their conservation efforts. There are many zoos, museums, and nature centers that have black-footed ferret exhibits that are always looking for volunteers to help. You can write letters to government leaders about the importance that animals like ferrets have on the environment. You can adopt an animal or donate to the conservation efforts. (see links below) You can also inform others about the conservation of ferrets and educate your community! And, as always, you can reduce your carbon footprint in order to help prevent future problems for ferrets caused by Climate Change. If any of these interest you, there are links to resources below so you can help a black-footed ferret in need!

Other Resources and Links:

Black-Footed Ferret Connections website (here you can find local resources with black-footed ferret exhibits, reach out to your own community, engage and educate others, or make a donation): http://blackfootedferret.org/how-to-help/

Defenders of Wildlife website (here you can adopt an animal, speak up for wildlife, become a defender of wildlife, and stay informed with current information regarding important issues that affect wildlife)

http://www.defenders.org/black-footed-ferret/how-you-can-help

Prairie Wildlife Research website (here you can see some FAQs about black-footed ferrets, as well as donate, shop, or adopt)

http://www.prairiewildlife.org/faqs.html

The American Ferret Association website (here you can learn about ferrets, as well as adopt an animal or donate to the conservation efforts being implemented to saving them)

https://www.ferret.org/read/BFF-Page.html

Global Footprint Network website (here you can calculate your carbon footprint and learn how you can reduce it in order to help the environment)
https://www.footprintnetwork.org

Citations:

Ernst, A.E. 2008. Retired U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. E-mail regarding ferret habitat calculations. Personal Communication with Pete Gober. August 4, 2008.

Garelle, D., P. Marinari, and C. Lynch. 2006. Black-footed ferret species survival plan. American Zoo and Aquarium Association Population Management Center. 29 pp. 

Nakazawa, Y., R. Williams, A.T. Peterson, P. Mead, E. Staples, and K.L. Gage. 2007. Climate change effects on plague and tularemia in the United States. Vector-Borne and Zoonotic Diseases 7(4): 529–540.

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. 2013. Recovery plan for the black-footed ferret (Mustela nigripes). U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Denver, Colorado. 157 pp. 

https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/b/black-footed-ferret/

Images in order of appearance:

http://www.denverpost.com/2017/09/05/endangered-black-footed-ferret-prairie-dog-deadly-plague-vaccine/

https://pmdvod.nationalgeographic.com/NG_Video/622/355/141114-black-footed-ferret-babies-vin_640x360_358214723509.jpg

https://www.stgeorgeutah.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/2014JanReintroductionSitesMap600x813.jpg

http://www.prairiewildlife.org/images/black_footed_ferret_range.jpg

http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/species/mammals/black-footed_ferret/images/Black-footedFerretGraph.jpg

https://thumbs-prod.si-cdn.com/ABv6CsOkdujmp8-oNWmz-yoWvW4=/800x600/filters:no_upscale()/https://public-media.smithsonianmag.com/filer/3d/32/3d320b42-732a-48bd-a754-64174292c4d3/black-footed_ferret_learning_to_hunt.jpg

http://www.defendersblog.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/bff-release-proctor.jpg

https://ecos.fws.gov/docs/recovery_plan/20131108%20BFF%202nd%20Rev.%20Final%20Recovery%20Plan.pdf

http://www.defenders.org/sites/default/files/black-footed-ferret-joel-sartore.jpg

https://i.pinimg.com/originals/15/e6/07/15e607d5d30a8dc58012ff107be2f269.jpg

http://www.torontozoo.com/img/cons/cb-bff2.jpg