Living Sanibel: Florida Panther
The Florida panther is the largest feline carnivore in North America. The last remnant population of the Eastern subspecies has managed to survive in the southern portion of Florida, including Charlotte, Lee, Collier, Glades, Hendry, Monroe, Palm Beach, Brevard and Miami-Dade counties. Although several cats have been authenticated as far north as Polk County, there appears to be no substantial breeding population north of the Caloosahatchee River and Lake Okeechobee. There are an estimated 120 to 150 panthers living in Florida.
As the Latin name (coryi) implies, the Florida panther was once considered a viable subspecies of the much more successful North American cougar. Recent genetic studies of mitochondrial DNA have disproved this status. There are now, according to “Mammal Species of the World,” only six recognized subspecies of puma, five of which are located in South America. The Florida panther, although still in desperate need of protection, is no longer considered a viable subspecies by the world’s leading taxonomists. In fact, since the introduction of several Texas pumas for several years to prevent inbreeding, the genetically “pure” Florida panther no longer exists.
The North and South American cougar family is currently listed as LC (Least Concern) by the IUCN. The cougar is the only large feline in the world whose population is increasing throughout most of its range. This is especially true of the western cougar population, which is expanding its numbers and range throughout the entire western edge of North America, from Colorado to British Columbia.
The panther in Florida survives largely on feral pigs, armadillos, raccoons, and white-tailed deer. The major cause of death to the Florida panther is the Florida panther. The extremely territorial male requires a tremendous range, of up to 200 square miles depending on available prey. Within that given range it may have two to five females with whom it breeds. When a male panther is born, his future is uncertain. When he matures, should he come across a dominant male in search of his own range, he will likely be seriously injured or killed.
The second leading cause of panther mortality is automobiles. This is also a byproduct of too many cats in too small of a range. As the male cat attempts to avoid the dominant male in any given range, it wanders farther afield, often placing itself in a suburban or urban environment where its chance of getting struck and killed by an automobile increases dramatically.
The Florida panther is Florida’s state animal, a designation granted by the schoolchildren of the state in 1982. The irony is that Florida’s incessant growth and its demand for more subdivisions, shopping malls, and asphalt put constant pressure on the ever-shrinking wild places the panther requires to survive. Scientists have calculated that to prevent further inbreeding, the state would need a resident population of approximately 240 panthers. Based on the panther’s habitat needs, this equates to 8,000 to 12,000 square miles of range. With developers edging in from all directions, it is unlikely the panther will ever have sufficient range to maintain its population without genetic intervention from outside stock.
A male panther requires more than 5,000 calories a day to survive. A nursing female cat requires twice that. That translates to 3.8 pounds of meat a day for a male to survive and 8 pounds for a female with cubs.
It is estimated that a single panther can kill up to 50 deer a year and 10 times that number of raccoons. The panther has also been known to kill and eat immature alligators, snakes and iguanas.
With proper management and continued importation of Texas cougars to keep the gene pool sufficiently varied, there is every reason to believe this remnant population of pumas will survive in the heartland of south Florida for years to come. Your chances of seeing one of these elusive animals in the wild are almost nil. One of the best places to see panthers in a semi-wild environment is at the Babcock Ranch in eastern Charlotte County, covered in the Charlotte County destination section of The Living Gulf Coast.
This is an excerpt from The Living Gulf Coast – A Nature Guide to Southwest Florida by Charles Sobczak. The book is available at all the Island bookstores, Baileys, Jerry’s and your favorite online sites.