The black footed ferretBy spencer miller

ClassificationClick icon to add picture

Scientific name:kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Chordata

Class: Mamalia

Order: Carnivora

Family: Mustelidae

Genus: Mustela

Species: Mustela Nigripes

Physical characteristi

csThe black footed ferrets name describes its black feet, it has a long tan colored body around 20 to 24 inches long, the have black fur on there face that almost looks like a mask, the weigh about 1 ½ to 2 ½ pounds, the male black footed ferrets generally weigh more than the females which is the only difference they have, it has short legs, long laws on the front feet, and large ears

DistributionThe black footed ferret lives in all of these places but most live in Arizona

Habitat The black footed ferret basically lives on a desert prairie and live in burrows.

Conservation status

The ICUN red list lists the black footed ferret as a threatened species, at one time there were only 18 black footed ferrets left in the world but captive breeding has made population increase to around 1000 in the wild and 2000 in captivity and growing.

ReproductionAlmost nothing is known about the black footed ferrets breeding habits but they are thought to breed around April or May. A black footed ferret becomes reproductive at one year of age. They will have a litter of around 2 to 5 kits.

Parental careThe black footed ferrets stay with

there mother for about 4 months tn leave to live by themselves. Only the mother cares for the kits.

Longevity and mortalityThe black footed ferret lives for about 3 to

5 years in the wild and around 8 years in captivity. Is no difference in life length between males and females.

Seasonal patterns

The black footed ferret does not hibernate or migrate but they do spend most of the time in there burrows in the winter, but really don’t have any seasonal patterns.

diet90% of the black footed ferrets diet is prairie dogs but it will also eat mice, gophers, ground, squirrels, birds, eggs, and small reptiles.

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predatorsThe predators of the black footed ferret are:) Foxes ) Great Horned Owls ) Golden Eagles ) Prairie Falcons) Badgers ) And Bobcats

human relationshipThe black footed ferrets aren’t pets. People don’t really

use them for anything. The reason black footed ferrets almost went extinct is because when pioneers settled here prairie dog towns were wiped out to do farming and ferrets are dependent on prairie dogs for food, but the prairie dogs were eating crops so the pioneers started a prairie dog poisoning campaign and black footed ferrets couldn’t find food.

Dead prairie dogs

Fun facts

)Baby black footed ferrets are called kits)Black footed ferrets sometimes kill predator birds in mid air that pick them up)At one time they were thought to be extinct )There has been black footed ferret litters of up to 10 kits)Black footed ferrets eat over 100 prairie dogs a year )Black footed ferrets can run up to 7 miles an hour

Works citedAnimals.NationalGeographic.com. National Geographic, n.d. Web. 28 Feb. 2013.Arkive.org. Arkive, n.d. Web. 28 Feb. 2013.Azgfd.gov. Arizona Game and Fish Department, n.d. Web. 9 Apr. 2013.BlackFootedFerret.org. Recovery Program, n.d. Web. 28 Feb. 2013.Defenders.org. Fact Sheet, n.d. Web. 28 Feb. 2013.Nhptv.com. Nature Works, n.d. Web. 9 Apr. 2013.