CASPER, Wyo. — The Wyoming Game and Fish Department released 18 black-footed ferrets on the historic recovery site near Meeteetse last week, the department announced Monday.
The 12 male and six female ferrets born in captivity “were coaxed into burrows in their new wildlands home,” Game and Fish said. Black-footed ferrets were once thought extinct but were then rediscovered in Wyoming 41 years ago, and Game and Fish and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service have been working to help the species recover.
Game and Fish released the 18 ferrets in an effort to maintain at least 35 ferrets at the Meeteetse recovery site, a baseline set by the U.S. FWS. The department observed an increase in female ferrets at the recovery site during nighttime surveys this summer and that led to the decision to release more males than females, according to Zack Walker, Game and Fish nongame supervisor.
Private landowners have been helpful in the efforts at the recovery site, Game and Fish said.
“The Lazy BV and Pitchfork ranches are dedicated to black-footed ferrets and their success,” Walker said. “Much of what we’ve been able to accomplish for ferrets at the Meeteetse recovery site is due to their considerable support, of which we’re grateful and appreciative.”
The ferrets at the recovery site appear to be doing well based on the observations in summer surveys, according to Walker. Game and Fish conducts spotlight surveys at night in the late summer.
“During the nighttime surveys, biologists search the ground around known burrows with high-powered spotlights, looking for the green glow of a ferret’s distinctive eyeshine,” Game and Fish said. “When they see it, they attempt to catch the ferret at the burrow.”
Game and Fish plans to continue monitoring the ferret population.
“One concern is plague — a common disease that impacts prairie dogs, the main food source for black-footed ferrets, as well as the ferrets themselves,” Game and Fish said. “Any wildborn ferrets captured are vaccinated against the disease, as well as distemper.
“To learn more about the remarkable recovery story of black-footed ferrets, visit the Game and Fish website.”
