How did ferrets come to America?

Answer 1

The ferret (Mustela putorius furo) is a member of the Mustelidae, order Carnivora is thought to have originated from North Africa, as referenced by Strabo, a Greek historian and geographer, in his book Geographica, written in about 20 AD, of an animal in Libya which was said to been bred in captivity for hunting rabbits. The earliest known ferret species, M. stromeri, probably gave rise to M. putorius and M. eversmanni during the middle Pleistocene. Evidence that the ferret was probably domesticated either from the European polecat (M. putorius) or descendants of the Steppe polecat (M. eversmanni), or possibly a hybrid.

Within the genus Mustela, ferrets belong to the subgenus Putorius, from which there are only three extant species: M. putorius, the European polecat; M. eversmanni, the Siberian, or steppe polecat; and M. nigripes (black-footed ferret). The European polecat lives in open forests and meadows, and is the ancestor of the domestic ferret. The Siberian polecat looks nearly identical to the black-footed ferret and leads a similar life on open grasslands and semi desert regions across Russia, China and Siberia.

The ferret was domesticated to hunt small animals, usually rabbits for at least 2500 years ago. It is unknown due to there are no written records. The ferret was domesticated before the cat, by more than 500 years.

The ferret use as a hunter of rodents and rabbits can be traced to the 4th century B.C. The ferret is mentioned in Aristophanes comedy 'The Acharnians'written in 450 BC and Aristotle lists the ferret in his 'Historia Animalium' written about 420 BC. Historical documents from Greece mention the ferret about 450 BC.

Roman documents mention the use of ferrets to hunt rabbits at about the time of Christ, but they were already domesticated. Romans depended on the use of ferrets in hunting rabbits, and probably introduced ferrets to the British isles, but their are no written records or evidence. The earliest records of ferrets arriving in Britain dates to the 1200's, and about the same time the rabbit appeared, a century before.

• Rabbits in British islands AD 1135-1279

• Ferrets in England court roll - AD 1223 - the first written evidence of ferrets and their use of hunting rabbits in Britain

• Rabbits in British mainland AD 1235

• English ferreter attached to English Royal Court AD 1281

• Ferrets in Queen Mary's Psalter AD 1340

• Ferrets regulated in England AD 1390

• Ferrets were used on ships for rodent control and were introduced to the United States in 1875 and were used to hunt rats and rabbits.

• Ferrets were introduced to New Zealand in 1882 as a means of rabbit control

Answer 2

In the US, the largest ferret farm is Marshall Farms, they breed ferrets for sale in pet stores and for medical research. Others are Path Valley Farms (does not breed ferrets for fur or research, only for pets), Triple F Farms, Ruby Fur Farm, Hidden Valley Fur Farm

Ferrets are raised on fur farms in Europe and NewZealand, their skins are marketed as fitch fur.

Answer 3

The ferret (Mustela putorius furo) a member of the Mustelidae order Carnivora is thought to have originated from North Africa, as referenced by Strabo, a Greek historian and geographer.

It is thought that the first domesticated ferrets originated in Egypt, but it is not a proven fact. There were drawings of a ferret-like animal that may have been a mongoose or a ferret

Answer 4

The term sable is purely relative to the colouring of the domesticated ferret which bares resemblance to that of the Steppe or the European Polecat.

It has the traditional markings of dark legs / tail and a lighter guard hair over the main body. The most significant shared marking is that of the mask which is present across the eyes / face of the ferret

Answer 5

Within the genus Mustela, ferrets belong to the subgenus Putorius, from which there are only three extant species: M. putorius, the European polecat; M. eversmanni, the Siberian, or steppe polecat; and M. nigripes, the black-footed ferret. The European polecat lives in open forests and meadows, and is thought to be the ancestor of the domestic ferret. The Siberian polecat looks nearly identical to the black-footed ferret and leads a similar life on open grasslands and semi desert regions across Russia, China and Siberia.

Ferrets probably evolved in Europe, between three and four million years ago, from weasel-like ancestors. The earliest known ferret species, M. stromeri, probably gave rise to M. putorius and M. eversmanni during the middle Pleistocene.

Black footed ferrets exact origin is unknown, but they first entered North America from Siberia approximately 1 to 2 million years ago, spread across Beringia, and advanced southward through ice-free corridors to the Great Plains approximately 800,000 years ago (Wisely 2006). Contrary to early characterizations that addressed natural history, the species was probably common historically, although its secretive habits (nocturnal and often underground) made it difficult to observe (Forrest et al. 1985, Anderson et al. 1986, Clark 1989).

One hundred years ago, between one million and six million black-footed ferrets thrived in the prairies of the Great Plains and the Intermountain West. But at the end of 1985, only eighteen were left, making it North America's rarest mammal.

The Black-footed ferret was first formally described in 1851 by J.J. Audubon and J. Bachman

Answer 6

they were used as hunters in farms to keep the mice and rats out.

Answer 7

The name "ferret" is derived from Latinfurittus, meaning "little thief"