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• <br /> 1 . 0 INTRODUCTION <br /> In August 1989 , Western Fuels - Utah Inc . (WFU) <br /> conducted a black-footed ferret survey within prairie dog <br /> towns to be impacted by or within one-half mile of Refuse <br /> Sub Area #4 of its Deserado Mine in Rio Blanco County, <br /> Colorado . <br /> The location of these towns relative to the mine permit <br /> area and the Refuse Sub Area is depicted in Figure 1 . 1 . The <br /> results of the black-footed inventory are reported herein . <br /> The black-footed ferret is probably the rarest mammal <br /> • in North America . A carnivore and a member of the weasel <br /> family, Mustelidae , the black-footed ferret is classified <br /> as an endangered species (Federal Register 32 :4001 , March <br /> 11 . 1967) . The black-footed ferret ' s historic distribution <br /> approximates that of its preferred prey, the prairie dog <br /> (Cynomys sp . ) , with which it often cohabits . The demise <br /> of the black-footed ferret in North America has occurred in <br /> response to habitat alterations and to widespread efforts <br /> undertaken by landowners to eliminate prairie dogs . <br /> Substantial efforts have been made during the past <br /> decade by the USFWS and others to determine the <br /> present status and distribution of the black-footed ferret . <br /> These efforts have included listings of known sightings <br /> • (Henderson et al . 1981 , Clark 1980 , Anderson 1983) . <br /> intensive searches for black-footed ferrets in areas in <br />