| Government considering
using ferrets to control prairie dogs
(Note: Welcome to the world of Language Deception, which begins with the false premise of the Endangered Species Act -- originally written expressly for international trade in threatened and endangered commercial species -- under which bureaucrats and other operatives are amassing vast land control holdings and a power base, including conservation easements, and continues with the wrong federal agency at the controls: U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service rather than the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Title 7 of the U.S. Code trumps the ESA. Private property owners are property owners, which is different -- stronger and more powerful -- than "land owners." Another deception is that black-footed ferrets currently being used as one of USFWS's 'poster species' are not even native to America: the ones being used are descended from ferrets imported from Russia! See: http://www.fort.usgs.gov/resources/research_briefs/BFF.asp for proof.)
July 28, 2006
No author provided at originating website address/URL. Associated Press story. The Wichita Eagle Wichita, Kansas http://www.kansas.com/mld/kansas/news/ To submit a Letter to the Editor: letters@wichitaeagle.com
Colby, Kansas - The federal government is considering an experiment that would use ferrets to reduce the exploding population of prairie dogs in Logan County. The five-year experiment would be administered by the Kansas Ecological Office of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) in Manhattan. Four landowners in the county said they would take part in the government's efforts, but the Logan County Commission voted to decline the experiment on a county-wide basis. Logan County Clerk Pat Schippers said the prairie dog population has multiplied "at a huge rate" in the county this year and the animals are "out of control." But she said the commission was concerned that introducing ferrets would hurt current efforts to control prairie dogs with chemicals. The black-footed ferrets are one of the rarest mammals in North America and are on the Endangered Species list. [USFWS] has wanted to reintroduce the black-footed ferret to parts of its historical range on the Great Plains for years, said field supervisor Mike LeValley, and has reintroduced them in South Dakota, Montana, Colorado, Wyoming and New Mexico, with mixed results. LeValley said black-footed ferret uses prairie dogs' burrows for shelter and feeds almost exclusively on prairie dogs and other small animals, so the animals could create a natural balance with the prairie dogs in Logan County. Field agents spent last week in Logan County mapping land being considered for ferret placement. LaValley said his agency must address two key public concerns for ferret reintroduction -- keeping ferrets from encroaching on land where landowners want prairie dogs and compliance with the Endangered Species Act. Should the experiment be approved, one of the conditions would be a guarantee to all neighboring landowners that the study would not hinder use of their land in any way, including the right to control prairie dogs on their property. At the end of the five years, if the experiment is deemed unsuccessful, any ferrets remaining alive would be trapped and taken to a different site.
Copyright 2006, The Wichita Eagle. http://www.Kansas.com/mld/kansas/news/state/15145846.htm
Related reading:
FORT Researchers meet the challenges of Re-establishing the Endangered Black-Footed Ferret
Undated, but sometime between 2001 and 2006.
No author provided at originating website address/URL.
2150 Centre Avenue, Building C Fort Collins, CO 80525
What started with excitement over their discovery, however, soon degraded into a frantic effort to save the last of a dying population. Distemper and plague, both introduced diseases, were discovered on the prairie dog colony that supported the ferret population. Between 1981 and 1987 the Meeteetse ferret population dropped from an active community consisting of many family groups to only 14 individuals captured to save the species. Those 14 animals became the future of the black-footed ferret recovery program. The initial research focus in 1981 was on learning about and recovering these last remaining free-ranging ferrets. From 1987 to 1991, the focus of research changed to questions on captive breeding techniques and what constitutes suitable habitat for eventual reintroduction of the ferret. Studies were conducted to standardize methods for measuring prairie dog populations. Surrogate Siberian polecats imported from the Moscow Zoo were used to determine effective monitoring techniques in preparation for the eventual release of the captive-born and raised black-footed ferrets. The Siberian polecat is the closest known relative to the black-footed ferret. Behavioral studies were also conducted to determine what rearing influence or conditioning might be required to increase survival of reintroduced ferrets. The first reintroduction was conducted at Shirley Basin, Wyoming, in the fall of 1991. Ferret researchers participated in the reintroductions, using custom-made radio telemetry systems to document the fate of the captive-born and raised, reintroduced ferrets. Survival was poor for the first year of reintroductions, so between 1992 and 1998 program researchers studied captive rearing and reintroduction techniques and developed minimal standards for reintroduction habitat. This was a massive effort requiring hundreds of biologists, technicians, and volunteers from many different agencies, countries, and backgrounds. The information gleaned from this work standardized much of the captive-rearing and reintroduction techniques for the black-footed ferret recovery program. In 1999, research efforts were once again directed toward a field study on translocation and management of re-established ferret populations. With only 14 animals founding the entire black-footed ferret population, genetic management was essential. Moving wild-born young ferrets between populations had to be studied to determine if they could be moved successfully and whether they survived better than captive-raised animals upon translocation. Research concluded that wild-born translocated black-footed ferrets survive much better than their captive-reared counterparts. Translocation of young wild-born ferrets is now considered a viable option for genetically managing wild populations. Beginning in 2000, the research emphasis changed once again. Although ferrets had been introduced into Montana, South Dakota, Wyoming, Colorado, Utah and Arizona, only the South Dakota populations were flourishing. South Dakota was the only state that had not recorded the presence of plague and fluctuating prairie dog populations. The decision was made to focus future research on understanding how plague was affecting small-mammal populations and the prairie dog ecosystem. The cooperative project on plague has included partners and cooperators with USFWS, USGS, CDC, BLM, NPS, USFS; state agencies in Colorado, Utah, Wyoming, Montana, and Arizona; the University of Virginia, Colorado State University, University of Colorado, Kansas State University; and organizations like the Denver Zoo, the Turner Endangered Species Foundation, the Russian Academy of Sciences, the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and many others. This research has begun to unravel the mystery of how plague operates in the wild. Research begun by then-U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service biologists Dean Biggins and Jerry Godbey continues at the USGS Fort Collins Science Center (FORT) in Fort Collins, Colorado, where these two scientists still lead this long-term research project. As in 1981, project researchers today still focus on learning about the black-footed ferret and the ecosystem that supports it. The program continues to conduct studies addressing the complex problems of re-establishing a critically endangered species in the West.
For more information contact: Jerry Godbey jerry_godbey@usgs.gov 970-226-9460; Fax: 970-226-9230 http://www.fort.usgs.gov/staff/godbeyj.asp
Jerry Godbey Publications: [21177] http://www.fort.usgs.gov/Products/Publications/pub_abstract.asp?PubID=21177: Biggins, D.E., and J.L. Godbey. 2003. Challenges to reestablishment of free-ranging populations of black-footed ferrets. C. R. Biologies 326: S104-S111. http://www.fort.usgs.gov/viewall.asp?Type=Publications&StaffID=119 [This publication is not available online. Please contact a FORT author (see sidebar to right) for availability of reprints.]
The constant in the black-footed ferret research program has been USGS scientist Dean Biggins. He was there as a USFWS researcher in 1981 with the discovery of the black-footed ferret colony, and he captured one of the last free-ranging ferrets when captive breeding was the only hope. He has designed countless studies to help resolve the seemingly insurmountable problems of ferret re-establishment. Dr. Biggins now designs and conducts studies on the effects of plague on ferret habitat. His dedication and that of the hundreds of other biologists, cooperators, technicians, and volunteers on the black-footed ferret project over the last 20 years are part of the reason there is now hope for the recovery of this endangered animal.
Dean Biggins dean_biggins@usgs.gov
970-226-9467; Fax: 970-226-9230 http://www.fort.usgs.gov/Staff/staffprofile.asp?StaffID=114 |