The black-footed ferret is the only species of ferret native to the Americas. In the late 1800s, there were approximately half a million to a million roaming the land, but by the late 1950s, they were presumed to be extinct due to habitat destruction.
But in 1964, a small group of ferrets were discovered in South Dakota and were entered into a breeding program that ultimately proved unsuccessful. In 1979, what was believed to be the last black-footed ferret alive died in captivity. Again, the species was feared extinct.
Meanwhile, the species were listed as endangered in 1967.
In 1981, some black-footed ferrets were rediscovered in Wyoming and another breeding and recovery program was initiated, with the plan to reintroduce them to the wild. Currently, captive breeding facilities are still working on recovering the species.
They have been reintroduced to several locations, but the populations face threats of disease, drought, declining genetic fitness by inbreeding, and loss of genetic diversity, as well as praire dog poisoning and shooting.
There are approximately 300 black-footed ferrets in the wild today, and the efforts to save the species that was twice thought extinct are ongoing.