Florida Panther Tracks

Within a flooded forest of Cypress and sprawling live oak trees, a Florida panther lies in wait.

Its tawny-colored fur blends well with the sandy and shadowed ground that its large body rests upon. Blue herons fly down and walk through the shallow edgewaters beyond the big cat while alligator's knobby heads rise above the water's surface out in the dark and deeper pools.

The Florida panther faces the woods and watches every movement of leaf and branch therein while its perked ears listen for the soft and slow footsteps of its cautious prey.

A narrow and well-trodden animal trail nearby leads out to this watery realm and a small herd of yearling white-tailed deer follow each other in a grazing walk towards the trail's end.

The panther's large nose rises in the air as it catches the scent of the approaching herbivores. It quickly sits up with intense alertness and readies itself for the ambush.

A doe appears from behind a thick growth of wax myrtle bushes and the Florida panther leaps from its lair and onto the deer in lightning speed.

Within seconds the big cat uses its powerful jaws to break the deer's neck and the struggling prey succumbs to the fatal spinal bites. The panther will eat all it can and then cover the carcass with leaves while remaining in the area for days until it's sated and finished feasting.

Where the deer roam, go the Florida panther. White-tailed deer along with feral hogs are the mainstay of the big cat's diet.

It's in the 3.4 million acres of the Everglades National Park area, Big Cypress National Preserve, Fakahatchee Strand State Preserve and the Florida Panther National Wildlife Refuge that the Florida panther has been able to maintain its current estimated population of about 80-100.

This small population of panthers living in Florida today represent the only known remaining members of this cougar subspecies that once ranged throughout the southeast.

The bounty-hunting years beginning in 1887 and lasting until the mid 1950's in Florida destroyed a large number of Florida panthers and it wasn't until the 1980's that scientists decided to begin collecting data on the elusive and almost extinct mammal since there were only about 30-50 left in the wild.

By 1995 the US Fish and Wildlife Service reclassified the Florida panther as an endangered species and created the program of introducing Texas cougars into the state to bring fresh genetic material to the remaining Florida panther population.

Since then the number of panthers has increased along with the challenges to their basic survival with the accelerated land acquisitions into their territories, resulting reduced range areas and high mortality rates on the highways.

So far this year at least 14 endangered Florida panthers have been killed on Florida's roads and an additional 10, ranging in age from kitten to 10-years old were found dead by Panther researchers.

To counter all these fatalities, scientists working in the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) Division of Imperiled Species Management track and capture Florida Panthers for a thorough physical exam and fitting for a radio-collar in order to monitor and aid in the recovery of these significant animals.

During these examinations and at den sites almost 40 kittens were examined, dewormed and inserted with a transponder chip. If this new brood of Florida panthers survive beyond their first few years and are able to find suitable habitats out of their father's average 200 square mile range, they stand a good chance of growing to an old age of 10 to 12 years.

It is the current vanishing Florida wilderness that may be the ultimate end of this expanding population of the Florida panther. If we continue to allow the woodlands to be torn down and paved over at the current unconscionable pace, we will all be witness to the end of Florida's state animal and what this Panther represents: a moment in time when this land was rich in diverse natural habitats and native species. If we lose our Florida Panther we will have lost the spirit of this place and its uniqueness as nature intended.

For information on the Florida Panther Research and Management Trust Fund, contact the FWC or online at myfwc.com. Any Florida Panther roadkill sighting needs to be reported by calling 1-888-404-3922.

The "Hometown Democracy" petition for citizen approval on land developments still needs signatures for the February deadline of getting on the ballot for final voting approval. The Florida Wildlife Federation at PO Box 6870, Tallahassee, Fla. 32314-6870, www.fwfonline.org has Florida Panther reports and road solutions in their newsletters.

Citizen involvement and action may be the only answer to preserving the Florida wilderness, the Florida panther and the natural character of our beautiful state.

Noreen Cullen is a Florida wilderness naturalist and photographer and can be reached at ncullenfws@yahoo.com.