The black-footed ferret is now considered one of
America’s top conservation success stories even
though the animal is still endangered. The species
declined throughout the 20th century, primarily as
result of a decrease in prairie dogs — the ferrets' main
prey — which were exteriminated as agricultural
pests. In 1979, black-footed ferrets were declared
extinct, but in 1981, Lucille Hogg’s dog brought a
dead one back to their Wyoming home, and scientists
scrambled to find more, eventually locating a colony
of 61 ferrets. Thanks to conservation efforts, about
1,000 of the animals are now thought to live across
the central U.S.
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