Threatened species of Mustela nigripes

The most endangered mammal in North America.

Declared extinct in 1979, conservation efforts allowed the black-footed ferret a comeback after a previously undiscovered colony of about a dozen individuals was found on a ranch in Meeteetse, Wyoming, just two years later. Today (2020), black-footed ferrets have been upgraded to the endangered species list with an estimated 206 black-footed ferrets alive in the wild and several hundred more in captivity.

Black footed ferrets have largely declined due to the loss of prey resulting from an extensive campaign to eradicate prairie dogs, mainly through poisoning. Canine distemper is fatal for Black-footed ferrets and it has decimated many populations and is a serious threat to reintroduced populations. Conversion of land to agricultural use has led to fragmentation of Black-footed ferret habitat. As ferrets live at low densities, a breeding population is spread over a large area, fragmentation reduces the populations ability to reproduce.

The last known wild population grew steadily from 60 in 1982 to 129 in 1984 as a result of protection. This trend came to an end in the summer of 1985 when canine distemper infected the ferrets and reduced the population to approximately 31. The remaining animals were captured for a captive breeding programme leaving no known wild population; six died in captivity and the global population of the species in 1985 totalled 25 Between 1991 and 1997 over 200 ferrets have been released back into the wild.

The IUCN considers Mustela nigripes as "Extincnt in the Wild". CITES lists the species as "Appendix 1".