Black-footed Ferret Cam
Watch live video of black-footed ferret mother Aristides and her eight kits (born May 28, 2025) in their den at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute in Front Royal, Virginia.
Content Warning: You may see Aristides or her kits enjoying a rat meal on our live webcam!
In the wild, 90 percent of a black-footed ferret’s diet is prairie dogs; they also eat rats and other small rodents.
At our campus in Front Royal, Virginia, female ferrets with kits typically get live prey so the kits learn to hunt from their mom just as they would in the wild. The first few live rats given to a ferret family are usually hunted by the mom while the kits sleep or observe.
Black-footed ferrets — the only ferret species native to North America — were once extinct in the wild. Thanks to conservation and breeding programs at places like the Smithsonian, their species has made an incredible recovery.
Because these kits may be candidates for reintroduction to the wild, it is particularly important for them to know how to hunt so they can survive without relying on humans.
This cam has no sound and appears in black and white because it is dark inside the den.
Ferret Cam FAQs
When is the best time to see the kits playing?
Like many babies, black-footed ferrets kits mostly spend the first few weeks of their lives resting. When they grow a little older, they will spend more time playing and exploring.
As a species, black-footed ferrets are nocturnal, so the kits may be more active at night or early in the morning.
Who are the kits' parents?
The mother, also called a dam, is 3-year-old Aristides. Aristides was born June 21, 2022, at the Louisville Zoo in Louisville, Kentucky. This is her second litter. She gave birth to a litter of seven kits last year at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute (SCBI) in Front Royal, Virginia.
The father, also called a sire, is ColeS. He is 2 years old and came to SCBI from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Ferret Conservation Center in Colorado. This is his first surviving litter.
Is that a rat?
Black-footed ferrets eat rats and other small rodents. You may see them enjoy a rat meal on camera! It's easy to confuse the rats with a lame or dead kit. However, all the kits are healthy and growing well.