Black-footed Ferrets: Life Behind the Mask
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Just over a century ago, hundreds of thousands of black-footed ferrets—and five billion prairie dogs—made their home throughout the North American prairie, which stretched from southern Canada to northern Mexico. When the plains were settled, ranchers saw these grass-eating prairie dogs as competitors of cattle and killed them by the millions. As prairie dogs disappeared, so did the ferrets. Prairie dogs are the ferret’s primary prey, and only two percent of the original prairie dog habitat remains today. Now, the black-footed ferret is one of the most endangered animals in the world.
The National Zoo has played a critical role in black-footed ferret recovery since 1981, when a small population of the species, previously thought to be extinct, was discovered in Wyoming. The 18 remaining ferrets were removed from the wild to establish a captive breeding and recovery program in Wyoming.
The Zoo’s Conservation and Research Center (CRC) in Front Royal, Virginia, was the first institution outside of Wyoming to breed the species. Scientists at the Zoo also developed the first successful artificial insemination technique for the species that deposited sperm directly into the uterus.
From 1989 through 2007, more than 500 black-footed ferrets were born at the National Zoo’s Conservation and Research Center in Front Royal, Va. with more than 380 born after natural breeding, and more than 130 kits produced after artificial insemination with fresh semen. Following reintroduction, the population has grown from 18 to more than 700 ferrets living in the wild today.
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