It is hard to guess what a Black-footed ferret weights. But we have the answer:
An adult Black-footed ferret (Mustela nigripes) on average weights 907 grams (2 lbs).
The Black-footed ferret is from the family Mustelidae (genus: Mustela). It is usually born with about 7 grams (0.02 lbs). They can live for up to 12 years. When reaching adult age, they grow up to 39.7 cm (1′ 4″). Usually, Black-footed ferrets have 3 babies per litter.
As a reference: An average human weights in at 62 kg (137 lbs) and reaches an average size of 1.65m (5′ 5″). Humans spend 280 days (40 weeks) in the womb of their mother and reach around 75 years of age.
The black-footed ferret (Mustela nigripes), also known as the American polecat or prairie dog hunter, is a species of mustelid native to central North America. It is listed as endangered by the IUCN, because of its very small and restricted populations. The species declined throughout the 20th century, primarily as a result of decreases in prairie dog populations and sylvatic plague. It was declared extinct in 1979 until Lucille Hogg’s dog brought a dead black-footed ferret to her door in Meeteetse, Wyoming, in 1981. That remnant population of a few dozen ferrets lasted there until the animals were considered extinct in the wild in 1987. However, a captive-breeding program launched by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service resulted in its reintroduction into eight western US states, Canada, and Mexico from 1991 to 2009. Now, over 1,000 mature, wild-born individuals are in the wild across 18 populations, with five self-sustaining populations in South Dakota (two), Arizona, and Wyoming. It was first listed as “endangered” in 1982, then listed as “extinct in the wild” in 1996 before being downgraded back to “endangered” in 2008.The black-footed ferret is roughly the size of a mink, and differs from the European polecat by the greater contrast between its dark limbs and pale body and the shorter length of its black tail-tip. In contrast, differences between the black-footed ferret and the steppe polecat of Asia are slight, to the point where the two species were once thought to be conspecific. The only noticeable differences between the black-footed ferret and the steppe polecat are the former’s much shorter and coarser fur, larger ears, and longer postmolar extension of the palate.It is largely nocturnal and solitary, except when breeding or raising litters. Up to 91% of its diet is composed of prairie dogs.The black‐footed ferret experienced a recent population bottleneck in the wild followed by a more than 30-year recovery through ex situ breeding and then reintroduction into its native range. As such, this sole endemic North American ferret allows examining the impact of a severe genetic restriction on subsequent biological form and function, especially on reproductive traits and success. The black‐footed ferret was listed as endangered by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) in 1967. Declared extinct in 1979, a residual wild population was discovered in Meeteetse, Wyoming, in 1981. This cohort eventually grew to 130 individuals and was then nearly extirpated by sylvatic plague Yersinia pestis and canine distemper virus Canine morbillivirus, with eventually 18 animals remaining. These survivors were captured from 1985 to 1987 to serve as the foundation for the black‐footed ferret ex situ breeding program. Seven of those 18 animals produced offspring that survived and reproduced, and with currently living descendants, are the ancestors of all black‐footed ferrets now in the ex situ (about 320) and in situ (about 300) populations.
Animals of the same family as a Black-footed ferret
We found other animals of the Mustelidae family:
- Saharan striped polecat with a weight of 218 grams
- Cameroon clawless otter bringing 21.6 kilos (47.62 lbs) to the scale
- Spotted-necked otter bringing 4.18 kilos (9.22 lbs) to the scale
- African striped weasel with a weight of 308 grams
- Hog badger bringing 8.17 kilos (18.01 lbs) to the scale
- Beech marten bringing 1.67 kilos (3.68 lbs) to the scale
- Honey badger bringing 9 kilos (19.84 lbs) to the scale
- Hairy-nosed otter bringing 5.97 kilos (13.16 lbs) to the scale
- Siberian weasel with a weight of 531 grams
- Amazon weasel with a weight of 268 grams
Animals with the same weight as a Black-footed ferret
As a comparison, here are some other animals that weight as much as the Mustela nigripes:
- Green acouchi bringing 966 grams to the scale
- Moonrat bringing 787 grams to the scale
- Eastern lesser bamboo lemur bringing 936 grams to the scale
- Lesser grison with a weight of 1 kilos (2.2 lbs)
- North African hedgehog bringing 931 grams to the scale
- Black-headed night monkey with a weight of 1.06 kilos (2.34 lbs)
- Hoffmanns’s titi with a weight of 1.07 kilos (2.36 lbs)
- Montane guinea pig with a weight of 1 kilos (2.2 lbs)
- D’Albertis’ ringtail possum bringing 796 grams to the scale
- New England cottontail bringing 814 grams to the scale
Animals with the same size as a Black-footed ferret
Not that size really matters, but it makes things comparable. So here are a couple of animals that are as big as Black-footed ferret:
- Black giant squirrel with a size of 31.9 cm (1′ 1″)
- Peruvian spider monkey with a size of 45.4 cm (1′ 6″)
- Tres Marias rabbit with a size of 42.8 cm (1′ 5″)
- Red giant flying squirrel with a size of 41.1 cm (1′ 5″)
- Spotted giant flying squirrel with a size of 39.8 cm (1′ 4″)
- Nine-banded armadillo with a size of 44.3 cm (1′ 6″)
- Humboldt’s hog-nosed skunk with a size of 35.4 cm (1′ 2″)
- European pine marten with a size of 45.7 cm (1′ 6″)
- Coppery titi with a size of 35.5 cm (1′ 2″)
- Common spotted cuscus with a size of 45.8 cm (1′ 7″)
Animals with the same litter size as a Black-footed ferret
Here is a list of animals that have the same number of babies per litter (3) as a Black-footed ferret:
- Namaqua rock rat
- Raccoon
- Himalayan field rat
- Mountain spiny pocket mouse
- Nagtglas’s African dormouse
- Malayan field rat
- Middle East blind mole-rat
- Mexican cottontail
- Gray fox
- Salvin’s spiny pocket mouse
Animals with the same life expectancy as a Black-footed ferret
Completely different animals, but becoming as old as a Black-footed ferret:
- Malabar large-spotted civet with an average maximal age of 14 years
- Blue duiker with an average maximal age of 12 years
- Greater fairy armadillo with an average maximal age of 12 years
- Horsfield’s tarsier with an average maximal age of 12 years
- Blue duiker with an average maximal age of 12 years
- African clawless otter with an average maximal age of 11 years
- Rock cavy with an average maximal age of 11 years
- Pygmy hog with an average maximal age of 12 years
- Myotis vivesi with an average maximal age of 10 years
- Royal antelope with an average maximal age of 14 years