Once considered the rarest mammal in North America, the Black Footed Ferret was reintroduced last fall to the Grasslands National Park in Southern Saskatchewan.
It appears that reintroduction has been successful. On Wednesday, Jim Prentice, the Minister responsible for Parks Canada, announced the sighting of the first wild-born Black Footed Ferrets in over 70 years in Canada.
In the early morning hours of July 25, a playful litter of kits was observed by biologists and citizen scientist volunteers. Both the mother and her three kits appear healthy and are engaged in honing their survival skills
34 ferrets were released in the national park in October, 2009. After a spring survey, 12 of the 34 were positively identified as the minimum number of ferrets that survived the winter. Officials say that the discovery of the ferret kits confirms just how quickly the ferrets are adapting to their new home on the Canadian prairies.
“The observation of wild-born ferrets is a tremendous cause for celebration and a significant benchmark in the reintroduction effort of this species,” said Minister Prentice.
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