Essay Sample about Black-Footed Feret

Black-Footed Ferrets were endangered in the 1970s, and in 1971, they were officially declared extinct! Around the 1990s, there was a habitat found in the wild of only so many Black Footed Ferrets. The real question is how did they go extinct/endangered, and did they eventually re-populate? A Black-Footed Ferret is an endangered species and was said to be extinct at one point. Black-Footed Ferrets mostly feed on Prairie Dogs, which makes up 90% of their diet. People have constructed sites to repopulate the Black-Footed Ferret, and the population is now around 300-400 ferrets. The Black-Footed Ferret is an endangered animal due to Sylvatic Plague, a decrease in Prairie Dogs, and habitat fragmentation. The Black-Footed Ferrets' scientific name is Mustela Nigripes. Their family class is Mammalia and their family is Mustelidae. Their diet is carnivorous, and they mostly eat prairie dogs.

First, some people may ask how the Black-Footed Ferret got endangered. According to The Nature Conservancy, “Being deliberately exterminated (they are often considered an agricultural pest), habitat conversion to cropland or other types of development, and sylvatic plague (which the ferrets are also susceptible to).” They were declared extinct in 1971. Today, Black-Footed Ferrets are still critically endangered, with approximately 300 left at dozens of sites across the U.S. One day, the Black-Footed Ferrets were found again by a dog in Wyoming. The Nature Conservancy states, “Then, in 1981, a rancher’s dog in Wyoming brought home a ferret it had killed. This led to the discovery of a small number of black-footed ferrets nearby.”

Secondly, a Black-Footed Ferrets diet is mainly prairie dogs. They can eat one prairie dog every 3-4 days. The ferrets have black facial features, tail tips, and of course feet. The rest of their structure is a buff-yellow color and is slender, short, and sleek. According to Toronto Zoo, “Black-footed ferrets are carnivorous and have a very specific diet. They are specialist predators of prairie dogs, which make up 90% of the ferret's diet. They are well adapted for hunting prairie dogs with their sharp teeth and strong jaws. Since prairie dogs are often larger than the ferret itself, ferrets often hunt prairie dogs while they’re sleeping.” The NPS gov says that Black-Footed Ferrets sleep up to 21 hours a day, and stay up at night to hunt for food.

Lastly, in the 1990s, they were repopulated through rehabilitation grounds to get them back into their habitat. Multiple WildLife Associations have reintroduced the ferrets to the wild at 29 sites across 8 states. Around 3,000 ferrets are needed to recover the species. To help the ferrets get used to their normal habitat and survive on their own, prairie dogs were relocated into the Black-Footed Ferret habitats so that the ferrets could have a food source. The Nature Conservancy states, “We're helping save black-footed ferrets by protecting their habitat and their food source. Their dependence on prairie dogs presents a challenge, as prairie dogs are considered agricultural pests in many areas. We're working with farmers, ranchers, and landowners to provide space for prairie dogs and, therefore, black-footed ferrets.”

The Black-Footed Ferret is an endangered animal due to Sylvatic Plague, a decrease in Prairie Dogs, and habitat fragmentation. The Key Points of this paper are over the extinction, endangerment, food chain, physical features, and conservation of the Black-Footed Ferret. The possible solution to help preserve Black-Footed ferrets is to have more Black-Footed ferret preservation sites and relocate the Prairie dogs into the habitats of Black Footed ferrets.