The US Fish and Wildlife Service announced last week that the successful cloning of a black-footed ferret is considered the breakthrough needed in the ongoing species conservation effort. According to Thursday’s press release, black-footed ferret recovery efforts aimed at increased genetic diversity and disease resistance took a bold step forward December 10th, 2020, with the birth of “Elizabeth Ann,” created from the frozen cells of “Willa,” a black-footed ferret that lived more than 30 years ago. “Although this research is preliminary, it is the first cloning of a native endangered species in North America, and it provides a promising tool for continued efforts to conserve the black-footed ferret,” shares Noreen Walsh, Director of the Service’s Mountain-Prairie Region. “Maintaining and increasing wild populations and suitable habitat continues to be essential for black-footed ferret recovery and will remain a priority for the Service,” Walsh continued. “Successful genetic cloning does not diminish the importance of addressing habitat-based threats to the species or the Service’s focus on addressing habitat conservation and management to recover black-footed ferrets.” A colony of black-footed ferrets in the Coyote Basin area of Uintah County is among the few known colonies of the species.
