Bang! There’s a thud on the front of your car. You’ve hit something. You pull over, stop, and see that you’ve hit and killed a panther crossing the road.
It’s been happening about twice a month lately, enough to worry wildlife biologists because the Florida panther is an endangered animal.
Because we built roads and housing developments in panther habitat, humans and automobiles have become a serious threat to a panther’s life and safety. By mid-August, at least 15 panthers were killed by cars this year. One was hit by a train. In 2019, automobiles took the lives of 24 panthers.
It’s unlikely you’ll encounter a panther on suburban roads in Broward or Palm Beach counties. But drive west on Alligator Alley (Interstate 75) and you’re in panther territory, primarily in Southwest Florida, east of Naples, around Big Cypress National Preserve and Everglades National Park. Occasionally, Florida panthers have been spotted further north.
Despite the threat from automobiles, the panther population is growing. Back in the 1980s, state wildlife officials estimated there were fewer than 30 Florida panthers alive. Today, from 120 to 230 grown panthers are roaming Southwest Florida.
There were so few panthers many years ago because no one really cared much about protecting them.
Ashlee O’Connor, who speaks at schools and to community groups for the state wildlife conservation commission, says people hunted them without any limit. Then, in 1958, the state began protecting panthers, designating them endangered animals. The federal government followed in 1967.
Still, O’Connor says, we didn’t know much about the Florida panther in the 1980s. Since then, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) have been partners in various ways to protect and preserve the Florida panther, which is a subspecies of puma.
A number of extensive steps have been taken to protect panthers.
To prevent the cats from getting hit by cars on I-75, 60 wildlife
crossings and bridges were built under and over the highway where there’s fast-moving traffic. Fences along I-75 help prevent the panthers from crossing elsewhere. A panther wouldn’t have much of a chance if hit by a car traveling 70 mph.
Speed limits were reduced on rural roads in panther habitat. Road shoulders were widened in some places to give drivers a better view, and a chance to see a panther that’s about to cross the road. Rumble strips were installed where panthers often cross and slow the speed of cars considerably. Roadside “panther warning” signs were installed.
These days, wildlife experts are still learning more about panthers’ habits and range by tracking them from the air. Normally, they fly over panther habitat three times a week in airplanes equipped to pick up signals from a radio collar previously put on the cat after it had been captured.
A male panther will typically roam an area about 200 square miles. Female panthers, on the other hand, typically stay within an 80-square-mile area.
To study the health of the panthers, veterinarians need to examine a number of them each year and must capture them to do it. They use a trained dog to track the panther. Eventually, the cat climbs a tree. The team sets up a net and an inflated air cushion under the tree to catch the animal after it’s shot with a tranquilizer dart.
A veterinarian anesthetizes the animal and begins a complete examination. The vet inoculates the panther against diseases, takes a blood sample, de worms the panther if necessary, tattoos an I.D. number in its ear, inserts a microchip under the skin (just as it’s done with your dog or cat), and fits the panther with a radio collar for tracking.
One of the vaccinations is against feline leukemia that can be fatal to panthers and picked up from domestic cats.
In the wild, panthers survive by preying on a variety of animals, including deer, calves, goats, and smaller animals like raccoons and rabbits.
Adult panthers are at the top of the food chain and have no natural predators. It’s a different story for the kittens, though.
They are prey for other animals and die for a number of reasons.
People sometimes ask if such an extensive effort to preserve a species of animal is worth it. Ashlee O’Connor points to the panther’s place in the check and balance of the natural environment and considers the preservation of Florida panthers a kind of reparation for taking some of their habitat in the first place.
Whether what’s being done is enough cannot be certain. “Many factors play into the recovery of a species,” O’Connor says. “There’s a breeding population now. I think we’re on our way to a recovered population. We’re making progress, but we’re not there yet.”