1. It’s Rare and Should Be Treated With Care! The Florida Panther Puma Concolor coryi Hi! I’m a Florida panther.

2. The Florida Panther is a sort of tawny brown on the back and pale gray underneath. It has white spots on its neck, head and shoulder. Adult male panthers weigh about 150 maximum. Girls rarely weigh more than 100 pounds. Boys are commonly 7-8 feet long from the tip of their tail to the tip of their nose. Females are most often about 6 feet in length. They live for 12-15 years normally.

3. The panther’s habitat has been shrinking over time do to deforesting and people draining cypress swamps. It now only lives [in the wild] in a small area of south Florida. The menu mainly consists of white tailed deer, wild hogs, but they may eat raccoons, armadillos, or even alligators if their preferred food is not available. It’s going… going… going… going……….. This is my home!

4. It seems like it doesn’t need help right? The most common threats are car collisions, shrinking habitat, heath, high levels of mercury in their prey, and US! That’s right, people cause most if not all of their problems. That is why we need to help fix things because there isn’t much time left! There are only about 80- 100 left in Florida making it one of the rarest mammals in the world! It has been on the endangered list since 1967!

5. First, more suitable habitat must be secured. Second, breeding programs are under way for the panthers to be later released into the wild. Third, scientists are exploring how breeding with closely related subspecies can increase the genetic variability [the limited gene pool is causing heath problems]. They are less resistant to diseases due to this inbreeding. SSSSHHH!! I’m hunting a deer. Ahhh… I’m so tired.

6.  The panther has an unusual skull that is a bit flatter then most other subspecies.  The kink in their tails is a direct result of inbreeding.  They rarely fight over territory [but when they do, I think it must be horrible].  When they travel, they tend to move in a zig-zag pattern.  They are most active at dusk and dawn.

7. Bibliography  www.kidsplanet.org/factsheet/ florida-panther.html Defenders of Wildlife www.kidsplanet.org/factsheet/ florida-panther.html www.kidsplanet.org/factsheet/ florida-panther.html  Big Cat Rescue Educational Sanctuary <www.BigCatRescue.org   <www.panthersociety.org  Everything accessed 2/28/07 THE END!