1. Ferrets were domesticated: A) To hunt rabbits. Incorrect. Rabbits were limited to the Iberian Peninsula at the time of ferret domestication, being introduced into greater Europe at a subsequent date and domesticated even later. B) To protect centralized grain stores from rodents. Probably incorrect for the initial domestication of the ferret, but it was doubtless a factor in later popularity. C) To hunt a type of ground squirrel. Probably correct. The souslik, or Ziesel, is a large ground squirrel who's bones are frequently found in prehistoric human garbage heaps, and ferrets might have been used to bolt them from their burrows. D) To hunt hamsters. Probably correct for the same reasons as C. E) For household pest control. Correct. Household pest control by ferrets is mentioned or implied in several ancient Greek writings. F) In a subversive attempt to corner the home manure market. You would think so if you go too long without cleaning the litter box. 2. Domestication is: A) A type of evolution that relies on shifts in gene frequencies caused by human selection pressure. Correct. Domestication is essentially human-moderated genetic manipulation causing gene-frequency shifts resulting in phenotypic changes. B) A process that takes hundreds of years to complete. Incorrect. While domestication is a process that can take thousands of years, it can just as easily take as few as a couple dozen generations, or any time in between depending on the intensity of human selection during breeding, and the initial amount of variation in the desired traits. C) Accomplished through several stages (neo-domesticate, semi-domesticate, domesticate). Incorrect. An animal is either domesticated or not -- there are no intermediate stages. Once the criteria are met, (human-controlled breeding, used for human purpose, at least one difference from the progenitor caused by human selection), it is considered domesticated. Black-footed ferrets housed in conservation breeding programs met two of the criteria of domestication, but are not "semi-domesticated." D) A deliberate, conscious process of selective breeding. Incorrect. Initial domestication of many animals is thought to have been accidental, caused simply by humans breeding those captive wild animals that acted tamest. E) A process where polecats convince humans to grind whole chickens into a savory snack. Food, scratching, litter boxes, etc.; who says ferrets are the slaves of humans? 3. Domestication has caused the following changes in ferrets (compared to their wild progenitors): A) Shorter, wider skulls. Incorrect. Minor differences do exist in some ferrets, but fall within the normal range of variation, rendering them insignificant at the population level. B) Stronger body odor. Possibly correct. Wild polecats are reported to have less obvious body odor than intact ferrets, but the data hasn't been verified. C) Larger body size. Correct. Intact ferrets eating a high quality diet are significantly larger than their polecat progenitors. Neutered ferrets, those eating a low quality diet, or those eating kibble, are about the same size or smaller than polecats. D) Increased curiosity. Correct. Curiosity in ferrets is markedly increased compared to polecats, probably due in part to behavioral juvenilization. E) Generalized neophobia. Incorrect. Neophobia is the fear of new objects in the environment, and a general trait of polecats. Ferrets display extreme neophillia, showing little or no fear of new objects in the environment. F) Crowded teeth. Incorrect. There is some minor crowding, especially with the premolars, but it is not statistically significant. G) Sustained albinism. Correct. Sustained albinism is only found in domestic animals, directly resulting from human breeding practices. H) Hoarding. Incorrect. All mustelids (and carnivores in general) hoard (or cache) food. Toy and food hoarding (caching) are instinctual ferret behaviors, generally unchanged by domestication. I) The ability to find the most tender part of the human body to lick, lick, and chomp. The ability to find that single unprotected tender spot is uncanny. 4. Ferrets were domesticated: A) By Egyptians about 2000 BC. Incorrect. There is NO evidence Egyptians even knew about ferrets. There are NO mummies, NO hieroglyphs, NO archaeological remains, NO linguistic evidence, NO ferret gods, NO natural history support. B) By Phoenicians about 600 BC. Probably correct to some degree, but only by inference, not direct evidence. C) By trans-Mediterranean peoples about 500 BC. Probably correct to some degree, but only by inference, not direct evidence. D) By Greeks about 350 BC. Correct. Greek references are the first historical accounts of the ferret. E) By Romans about AD 70. Correct. Romans didn't initially domesticate the ferret, but they were certainly involved to some degree. F) By Europeans about 1000 AD. Incorrect. G) By Ohio ferret farms about AD 1880. Incorrect. H) By arrogant Americans about AD 1977. Some do seem to think so, don't they? 5. The progenitor of the domesticated ferret was: A) The European polecat, Mustela putorius. Incorrect (at this time). It is unclear if the ferret is a descendant of the European polecat, the steppe polecat, or a hybrid of both Old World polecats. B) The steppe polecat, Mustela eversmanni. Incorrect (at this time), for the same reasons as A. C) The black-footed ferret, Mustela nigripes. Incorrect. While more and more scientists are beginning to consider the black-footed ferret to be a subspecies of the steppe polecat, the New World polecat is not the progenitor of the ferret. D) The exact progenitor is unknown. Correct (at this time). If the progenitor cannot be confirmed, then it is unknown. E) Disney cartoon weasels. Or maybe the weasels in "Who Framed Roger Rabbit?" The weasel in the straightjacket? [Posted in 2 parts: Second post combined onto this one. BIG] 6. Ferrets never became popular as a domesticated animal because: A) They have a strong body odor. At least partially correct if early references can be believed. B) The economic costs of maintaining ferrets nearly equal the benefits of pest control and food production. Correct. Ferrets have never had a high cost-benefit ratio, making them economically unpopular except to those of marginal economic status where small returns have significant impact. C) Of the perception that ferrets were commonly owned by poachers. At least partially correct if early references can be believed. D) They couldn't out-compete cats as mousers. Correct. Cats slowly supplanted ferrets in that capacity after their introduction into Europe. Luckily for ferret owners, as ferrets lost their job as mousers, rabbiting and ratting became more important (as both species became more common), and ferrets continued to be maintained as a domestic species. E) Of a conspiracy of deception promoted by jealous dogs and cats. I suspect it is green-eyed jealously of those beautifully long necks. 7. Ferrets were commonly found in the United States: A) during the 1600s. Incorrect. There is no evidence that ferrets were ever imported into the New World during the 17th century. It is probable a few ferrets were aboard ships, or even made landfall, but their number never had a significant historical impact, and they were never commonly found. B) During the 1700s. Correct. By the later third of the 1700s, several British and American ships were named ferret, American publications carried ferret husbandry and ratting information, and small ferret cages were listed on several ship's equipment rosters. C) During the 1800s. Correct. During the first part of the 1800s there were at least three U.S. naval ships named ferret, and ferrets were commonly mentioned in the literature. By the middle of the 19th century, ferrets are mentioned in several state game laws. By the end of the century, ferrets were sold from ferret farms and in pet stores, and the first books on the ferret were published. D) During the 1900s. Correct. E) Whenever socks could be found in sufficient quantity. Is it a coincidence all ferret owners own socks? I don't think so. 8. Ferrets were used during the 1800s in the United States: A) To help supplement rations during the Civil War. Correct. This is supported not only by the implications of game laws, but also by personal accounts. B) To hunt various furbearers. Correct. Ferrets were used to hunt mink, raccoon, weasels, opossums, fox, and skunk. C) For rat control. Correct. Not only are the earliest accounts of ferrets in the USA linked to ratting, but ferrets were used to hunt rats in New York City, predating the establishment of the famous Ohio ferret farms. D) In animal experimentation. Incorrect. Ferrets were not significantly used for experimentation until the early 1900s when their value in influenza research became evident. E) For their pelts. Correct. Some ferret farms routinely sold "fitch fur" for use as coat trim and paint brushes. F) For rabbit control in orchards. Correct. Many game laws specifically allowed the use of ferrets to control rabbits suspected of damaging fruit trees. G) Aboard ships for rodent control. Correct. Ferret farms routinely sold ferrets for use aboard ships. H) To drag cables and telephone wires through small pipes. Correct. First mentioned in 1880 when electrical wires and telephone cables were first being strung. I) To spur the textile industry via the manufacturing of replacement socks. Could have been a factor in the success of the industrial revolution, and might be the origin of the phrase "sock it to me." 9. Ferrets: A) Can form feral colonies. Correct. While most reports of feral ferret colonies are exaggerated or scientifically unsubstantiated, the large, self-sustaining ferret population in New Zealand proves the point. B) Are dangerous to babies and young children. Correct. While ferret-caused injuries are infrequent and generally inconsequential compared to those from dogs or cats, they can and have harmed children in the past. C) Are vectors for dangerous diseases, including rabies, tuberculosis, and influenza. Correct. A low statistical probability is not the same as a lack of occurrence. D) Readily escape into the wild. Correct. In just a single example, there are frequent reports on the FML of ferrets that have escaped captivity. If you doubt it, just leave a ferret near an open front door. E) Think the entire California Fishin' Gestapo has the collective IQ of a salamander. I think ferrets are overestimating their abilities. 10. In the last 200+ years, the number of feral colonies of ferrets found in the United States, Canada and Mexico number: A) More than 100. Incorrect. B) More than 50. Incorrect. C) More than a dozen. Incorrect. D) A small handful. Incorrect. E) Zero. Correct. There is not a single report of feral ferrets in the United States that has been independently confirmed. U.S. feral ferret reports can be classified into 1) short-term, unstable, short-lived populations that rapidly die out, 2) unconfirmed sightings, or 3) the misidentification of lost pets. Nowhere in the United States has ANY feral ferret population been located or verified. F) More than you can count, given ferret math. I have 20 feral ferrets lurking around my house, which I think is better than 20 feral Teletubbies. Bob C [Posted in FML issue 4061]