There are three main フェレット species in the world. The black footed フェレット (mustela nigripes) is among them. This フェレット is the only native フェレット to North America. Ferrets belong to the Mustelidae family, which includes weasels, minks, skunks and others.
The black footed ferret's diet includes prairie dogs. When farmers poisoned the prairie イヌ to protect their crops it also effected the ferrets. In 1970 these 動物 were thought to be extinct. However, a small group of them were found in Wyoming a while later.
There are about 700 black footed ferrets that live in the wild today.