Wildlife In Florida
The Florida Panther
 
 Felis concolor coryi
The following is taken from the Florida Panther Society's Web Site
"The lion of the Americas, Felis concolor, is also known as the mountain lion, catamount, puma, cougar, and panther. It is the widest ranging mammal in the western hemisphere, North and South America, from the Atlantic to Pacific Ocean. Geographic boundaries have served to separate populations and develop variations in body size, skeletal features and pelage. This serves to divide the cougar into many subspecies (some say up to 30).

Felis concolor coryi, the Florida panther, is a subspecies that once roamed throughout the southeastern United States. Mistakenly perceived as a threat to humans, livestock, and game animals, the panther was persecuted and hunted to near extinction by the mid-1950's. What remained of their number by 1972 was found to exist in the Everglades and Big Cypress region of South Florida.  The animal became listed as an endangered species in 1973.

Today, the Florida Game and Freshwater Fish Commission, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, National Park Service, and Florida Department of Environmental Regulation have jointly developed and are implementing the Florida Panther Recovery Program. It includes the reintroduction of genetic material from a related sub-species, the Texas cougar, in order to revitalize the panther breeding population. The goal is to arrest the decline of the panther resulting from isolation and inbreeding.

An important part of this process and essential to prevent the extinction of the species will be the re-establishment of a panther population into appropriate portions of its former range. Since 1988 a translocation study has been underway to evaluate where the range and prey base of a suitable habitat might be. The Okefenokee Swamp, Osceola National Forest, and Apalachicola National Forest are locations which offer some of the highest potential. The actual reintroduction of animals will come only after evaluation of the study indicates whether or not the cats can successfully establish territories and sustain themselves.

After more than two decades of study we are now entering a phase of the process which requires a major public education effort. An understanding of and concern for preserving natural systems must be developed among land owners, business, and recreational interests. In the final analysis the measure of success for a meaningful panther recovery will be its reintroduction.

There is a part for everyone to play in saving the Florida panther. If you wish to help prevent the extinction of this living symbol of the wilderness, become involved. It is a way of giving something back."
 

 
Click below to see more panther pictures.
 
The Florida Panther Society
 
 
The Florida Panther: Life & Death of a Vanishing Carnivore
 
 
Enviro Links: Florida Panther Issues
 
 
The Florida Panther Home Page
 
 
Wild About Cats
 
Wildlife Rescue--Dedicated to the conservation
of the Florida Panther
 
 
 These pages created and maintained by Lea Burnside, all rights reserved.  Photos are copyrighted as noted.  When possible, permission to use photos was obtained from copyright holder.  For more info on this site, email Lea Burnside.
 
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