There are only 30 to 50 adult Florida
panthers left in the wild, making Florida’s
official state animal one of the most
endangered mammals in the world. At one
time perhaps 3,000 or more Florida panthers
ranged throughout Florida, northward
through Georgia, parts of South Carolina,
and Tennessee, and westward through
Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Arkansas,
and possibly eastern Texas. Today, the
Florida panther’s range is limited to parts of
southern Florida, including the Big Cypress
Swamp and the Everglades.

Initially, the Florida panther’s decline was
due to excessive hunting because of an
unfounded fear for livestock and human
safety. More recently, loss of its habitat has
left the Florida panther with fewer places to
live and find food. Extensive inbreeding—
the result of isolation from other populations
with which it once intermingled—has
diminished the Florida panther’s gene pool.
Highway mortality and fighting between
individuals, particularly males, have further
reduced Florida panther numbers.

The Florida panther is a subspecies of the
cougar, or mountain lion. Cougars have very
muscular bodies, powerful jaws and a tail
that is nearly two-thirds the length of their
body. Adult males weigh an average of 125
pounds and measure 7 feet from their nose
to the tip of their tail. Females weigh about
80 pounds and are about 6 feet in length.
With their short, round ears and round face,
they look very much like domestic cats.
Adult cougars have tawny-colored fur on
their backs; white fur on the chest, belly and
inner legs; and black coloring on the tip of
the tail, the back of the ears, and on parts of
the face. Coloration provides camouflage
concealment for adult cougars while hunting
and for kittens left alone in the brush while
their mother hunts for food.

Although similar in appearance and habit,
100 years of isolation have made the Florida
panther distinctly different from other
cougars. Its fur is darker, shorter, and
coarser, and though the Florida panther has
a smaller body size and smaller feet than
other cougars, it has longer legs. There are
also differences in skull measurements.

ish & Wildlife Service

Florida Panther
Puma [Felis] concolor coryi

Many Florida panthers are further
distinguished by a cowlick in the middle of
their back and a right-angle crook at the end
of their tail—traits attributed to genetic
isolation and inbreeding.

Florida panthers are mostly nocturnal
animals and tend to avoid one another,
except when males and females come
together to breed. Adult males defend
territories averaging 200 square miles while
females have territories of about 75 square
miles. Female panthers are ready to breed
at about 2 years of age and males reach

breeding maturity at about 3 years. Like
domestic cats, the female panther
announces her availability with persistent
howls and cries until she attracts a mate.
Unless a litter is lost, female panthers
typically breed every other year. A litter of
1 to 3 kittens is born in a simple den that
often consists of little more than dense
vegetation to protect them from the
weather and hide them from predators.

Kittens weigh about a pound and are born
with their eyes closed. Their mother nurses
them for about 2 months until they are able

Loss of habitat and
genetic health has
made the Florida
panther one of the
most endangered
species in the world.
The Florida panther
is more associated
with wetlands than
any other North
American cougar
subspecies.



to eat fresh meat. The spots on their fur and
bands on their tails fade as they get older,
and their blue eyes turn light brown. Kittens
are most vulnerable during their first 6
months when they are left alone for long
periods, sometimes as long as 2 days, while
their mother hunts for food. Hawks, owls,
black bears, and even adult male panthers,
prey on kittens. Panther young stay with
their mother for 1/4 to 2 years. When
mothers determine that their young are old
enough to be on their own, they often leave
them at a kill site and do not return.

Florida panthers, like all cougars, stalk and
ambush their prey. Hiding under cover, they
sometimes wait hours for the right moment.
to attack. Panthers can leap distances of
more than 15 feet. They rely on surprise to
catch their prey because although they can
run up to 35 miles per hour, they can only do
so for distances of about 200 yards. While
panthers prefer to eat large animals such as
deer and wild pigs, they will eat raccoons,
armadillos, rabbits, rats, birds and even
alligators. They’ve also been known to eat
grasshoppers and grass. An adult panther
requires the equivalent of 35 to 50 deer each
year to survive, and females with young may
need twice that much. Since it takes many
raccoons to equal one deer, hunting large
prey is more energy efficient. Studies show
that panthers feeding on a diet primarily of
deer and wild pigs are healthier than those
eating smaller animals.

With the tremendous amount of
development over the last few decades,

loss of habitat has become a serious threat
to the Florida panther’s survival. The
Florida panther prefers a habitat of
hardwood hammocks and pine flatwoods but.
is also found in wet prairies, marshes and
swamp forests. Alligator Alley, a major
highway that runs across south Florida, was
built in the 1960s and provided access to the
heart of panther territory. The improved
road system was followed by the lumbering,
mining, and oil and gas exploration
industries, as well as housing, commercial,
agricultural, and recreational development.
Draining of wetlands by a vast system of
canals, intended to facilitate additional
development, has also made the area more
accessible to off-road vehicles.

Destruction of habitat is not the only
human activity that has had a detrimental
effect on the Florida panther population.
Early settlers viewed panthers as a threat
to both livestock and people. In the late
1800s a $5 bounty, or reward, was offered
for each Florida panther pelt. Reliable
historic population figures are not available.
However, biologists estimate that the
population may have numbered
approximately 500 at the turn of the century.
By 1966 the Florida panther population was
estimated to be as low as 100 to 300.
Although hunting of Florida panthers was
prohibited under state law as early as 1950,

four are known to have died from gunshot
wounds between 1978 and 1984. At least one
Florida panther has died of mercury
poisoning. Collision with motor vehicles is
another common cause of death, particularly
during the breeding season when male
panthers roam, looking for mates or
opportunities to expand their territories.

Another significant threat to the Florida
panther is its decreasing ability to produce
healthy young. Abnormalities, most of which
are thought to be genetic in origin rather
than the result of poor nutrition, disease or
environmental contaminants, occur in more
than 90 percent of male Florida panther
sperm. Many panthers also suffer from
congenital heart defects. Biologists believe
these abnormalities are likely due to
extensive inbreeding among the few
remaining animals.

Disease also threatens small inbred
populations like the Florida panther.
Panthers have tested positive for a number
of viruses, indicating that they had been
exposed to or were infected with several
potentially pathogenic agents. Actual
impacts of diseases on the population is
not clearly known,

In 1967, under a law that preceded the
Endangered Species Act of 1973, the Florida
panther was designated as an endangered
species. An endangered species is
considered in danger of extinction
throughout all or a significant portion of its
range within the foreseeable future. A
threatened species is likely to become
endangered within the foreseeable future
throughout all or a significant portion of its
range. Today biologists predict the Florida
panther will likely disappear in 20 to 40
years unless drastic measures are taken.
Asingle catastrophic event could reduce
that time.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is
actively working with various federal and
state agencies and private organizations to
save the Florida panther from extinction and
return the population to healthy numbers.
Areas of emphasis include protecting and
enhancing the population in south Florida
(ineluding habitats and prey resources),
restoring genetic health to the population,
and developing the techniques and
technology needed to successfully
reestablish panthers into other historic
range areas.

To protect both the panther and its habitat,
nearly 30,000 acres in south Florida have
been set aside to form the Florida Panther
National Wildlife Refuge. This refuge is
adjacent to other state and federal lands;
together, they provide nearly 1 million acres
of protected habitat for the Florida panther.
Roads can divide panther habitat into
fragments that are too small to meet the
territorial needs of a panther. They can also

act as barriers, preventing movement within
and between territories. Biologists hope to
maintain and reestablish links connecting
panther habitats. Road improvements such
as fencing, wider shoulders, underpasses for
wildlife and bridge extensions have helped
reduce road fatalities.

In an experimental effort to improve the
genetic health of the Florida panther, the
Fish and Wildlife Service in cooperation
with other organizations introduced eight
female cougars of a Texas subspecies into
Florida in 1995. Before it became isolated,
the Florida panther normally bred with

this subspecies along the western part of

its historic range. This effort will enhance
the genetic health of the Florida panther.
Although one female died after being struck
by a vehicle, six litters containing nine
kittens had been produced by the end of
1997. All kittens have been tagged with
transponders for future identification. To
date, three kittens have been recaptured

by wildlife biologists and outfitted with radio
transmitters, allowing them to be closely
monitored. Biologists hope to radio
instrument all offspring. It’s too soon to
know if these measures will save the Florida
panther, but its future is more promising
now than it has been in a long time.

U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
http:/Awww.fws.gov
June 1998