As Service photographer, based out of the National
Conservation Training Center, Ryan Hagerty is sent on a variety of photo
assignments. This month Ryan was hired to shoot the Black -Footed Ferret
Recovery Program in Colorado. Here are a few of the images that he took
to help further document this important endangered species program.
The black-footed
ferret is considered to be the rarest mammal in North America. In 1988,
the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service developed the "Black-footed
Ferret Recovery Plan" which emphasized species preservation through
natural breeding, development of assisted reproductive technology, and
establishment of multiple reintroduction sites. The objective of the
captive breeding program was to maintain 240 ferrets (90 males, 150
females) of prime breeding age (1-3 years old) in captivity, and subdivide
the captive populaton into different locations in order to avoid catastrophic
loss at a single facility. A high priority is placed on protecting genetic
diversity so the "Black-footed Ferret Genome Resource Bank"
was established. This is a frozen repository of sperm from the most
genetically valuable males. Ferrets were released back into the wild
in Wyoming in 1991, in South Dakota and Montana in 1994, and in Arizona
in 1998. The Colorado reintroduction started in 2001. Since then a total
of 170 ferrets have been released in the state; 20 more will be released
in October.
The Black -footed
ferret Recovery Implementation Team (BFFRIT ) is a multi-agency/ conservation
organization effort, led by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which
includes representatives from federal and state governments, zoos, and
nonprofit organizations.
For more information about the black-footed
ferret and other endangered species visit FWS
Endangered Species Program. For more information about the recovery
program visit Black-Footed
Ferret Recovery Program.
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