GatorMail-Q                   Black Footed Ferrets
 
Black Footed Ferrets don't live in Alaska, and probably never did. They were
thought extinct for some time, then a population in Wyoming was found in the
early 80's. The last 18 known BF ferrets were rounded up, bred in captivity,
and have been released in Montana, Wyoming, and S Dakota over the last 4
years. About 250 have been reintroduced.
 
BF ferrets main diet is prairie dogs. They nearly became extinct because
ranchers poisoned the prairie dogs for fear of livestock breaking their legs
in prairie dog holes.
 
For those with Web browsers, there was an article posted about the latest
release on the US Fish and Wildlife Service web server recently:
 
http://bluegoose.arw.r9.fws.gov:80/NWRSFiles/WildlifeMgmt/SpeciesAccounts/BlackF
 ootedFerretNews.html
 
(I am trying to get permission to repost this article here.)
 
Our ferret, Belle, has 3 stuffed Black Footed ferrets (and one stuffed river
otter) to play with. She likes to steal the smallest one and hide it under
the bed or sofa. But since they are endangered, we don't let her keep it.
 
Linda, Richard, Joy and Belle
[Posted in FML issue 1072]