The Arizona Game and Fish Department released 19 endangered black-footed ferrets at three sites in northern Arizona last week.
Wildlife managers hope to bolster the population of what they call “one America’s most imperiled mammal species.”
Biologists released 13 ferrets on the evening of March 10 into the Aubrey Valley and Double O Ranch areas near Seligman. Six more were placed at Garland Prairie near Parks.
"We are anticipating that a spring release will give the ferrets a greater chance at survival since prairie dogs are beginning to emerge and it will be easier for the ferrets to find prey,” says AZGFD black-footed ferret Project Field Coordinator Jennifer Cordova. “It is also at the beginning of the breeding season for ferrets so we are hoping that we will find wild born litters this summer.”
The animals originated from the captive breeding programs at the Toronto Zoo and the Smithsonian National Zoo. They were then transported to the U.S. Forest Service’s Black-footed Ferret Conservation Center in Colorado where they learned to hunt and survive in the wild.
There are 35 ferret release sites across the U.S. and Garland Prairie is one of only two that are located on land managed by the Forest Service. The area saw its first release in 2025.
The black-footed ferret is North America’s only native ferret species. They’re characterized by the distinct black markings on their feet, tails and faces.
The animals were once common throughout North America. But populations collapsed in the 20th century because of habitat loss and disease. The species was thought to be extinct until the early 1980s when a small population was found in rural Wyoming.
By 1986 only 18 ferrets were left. So, wildlife managers captured the surviving members of the species and created a captive breeding and reintroduction program.
Now there are about 300 ferrets live in the wild in the U.S. and Arizona is home to about 20 of them.
The species’ biggest threat is sylvatic plague, which is a bacterial disease carried by fleas and infects both ferrets and their main prey, Gunnison’s prairie dogs. Released ferrets are vaccinated against the disease but their offspring will be vulnerable.
Biologists saw little to no signs of plague at the Arizona release sites. Biologists will monitor the ferrets and their offspring through spotlighting and trapping efforts.
