Photo Copyright: MacJewell, Flickr Creative Commons
Since the Florida Panther's population is less than 100 individuals, every panther is important for the survival of the species. In truth, the pure bloodline of the panther may be already tainted to the point of the destruction of the subspecies. When the population was suffering from dwindling individuals, mountain lions from western Texas to increase diversity. Nether the less, the Florida Panther is an important subspecies and one of the only confirmed mountain lion living in the Eastern portion of the United States.
These mountain lions are true swamp cats. Living in the Florida Everglades they are specially adapted to their environment. The only problem is, these days human development is pressing ever further into the glades and the Panther's territory. The danger for these cats is clear with the increasing number of roads in the area. Whether it is dirt or paved roads, the panther has to cross it to reach the other side. Last year 14 Florida Panthers were killed by collisions with cars. That is 14% of the entire population.... each year that is killed. Tunnels are created under the roads to help the flow the of panther, but it seems that it doesn't solve the problem.
This spring, a major blow the the population occurred when a female panther was found dead with a bullet wound. Henry County Florida, a panther was found shot just outside Big Cypress Preserve. It is a felony to kill an Endangered Species, but the criminal is unknown.
Read more about the Florida Panther and information regarding the killing go to:
http://easterncougar.org/CougarNews/
