Meet Elizabeth Ann, The First Clone Of A Black-Footed Ferret That Could Lead The Way To Saving Endangered Species

The chances are you haven’t seen a black-footed ferret, also known as prairie dog hunter, because the species were thought to be extinct. Only in 1981, seven of North America’s only ferret species were found on a Wyoming ranch. Seven years later, one of the ferrets called Willa had its cells frozen following its death, as the DNA technology was first developed.

Fast forward to today and Elizabeth Ann was born using the same frozen cells taken from Willa 33 years ago. This cute little ferret arrived via C-section on December 10, and became the first-ever cloned endangered US species.

This marks a groundbreaking step in recovery of endangered species. “The birth of Elizabeth Ann could help address genetic barriers faced by many imperiled wildlife,” stated US Fish And Wildlife on Twitter.

Elizabeth Ann will not be released into the wild but instead raised in the National Black-footed Ferret Conservation Center in Colorado, so that researchers can continue to study her.

More info: Twitter | Facebook | FWS.Gov

Elizabeth Ann the black-footed ferret was cloned from the frozen cells of her ancestor Willa who died 33 years ago

Image credits: National Black-footed Ferret Conservation Center

US Fish and Wildlife has announced the wholesome news on Twitter

Image credits: USFWSMtnPrairie

The first-ever cloned endangered black-footed ferret Elizabeth Ann was brought to life by this domestic ferret mom

Image credits: USFWSMtnPrairie

Image credits: USFWSMtnPrairie

Image credits: USFWSMtnPrairie

Image credits: Revive & Restore

Elizabeth Ann’s successful genetic cloning gives hope to other endangered species around the world

Image credits: USFWSMtnPrairie

Image credits: USFWSMtnPrairie

The cloned ferret arrived via C-section on December 10, making it a groundbreaking moment in the history of endangered species recovery

Image credits: Revive & Restore

Image credits: Revive & Restore

But there are no plans to release this adorable furry ball into the wild

Image credits: USFWSMtnPrairie

Additional footage of the lovely Elizabeth Anne. pic.twitter.com/fz7HnwyI1F

— US Fish and Wildlife (@USFWSMtnPrairie) February 18, 2021

Image credits: Inside Edition

If the project goes well, this would be a promising advancement in retrieving species that are on the brink of extinction

Image credits: NYTScience

And this is what people had to comment on it

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