Two more panther deaths reported in Florida

Posted on May 29, 2012 by Bob Berwyn

Florida Panther/USFWS.

Two of the wild cats die within a week, leading to more concerns about management and protection of the endangered species

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — Two more rare and endangered Florida panthers died last week, for a total of 12 mortalities this year.

So far, 19 panther kittens have been born in 2012, including litters with three and four kittens documented just in the past few weeks in Big Cypress National Preserve.

Some conservation advocates said they’re troubled by the trend toward more deaths resulting from panthers fighting each other, suggesting that the wild cats are running out of room.

A Washington, D.C.-based watchdog group, Public Employees for Environmental Ethics, was quick to point a finger at federal land managers after the latest deaths, charging that various resource decisions in the area are contributing to the mortality.

“Individually, these panther deaths are difficult to avoid but collectively they are the unavoidable result of official dereliction of duty,” said PEER director Jeff Ruch. (more…)

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Finding more room for Florida panthers

Posted on November 21, 2011 by Bob Berwyn

Green areas on the map represent the network of already acquired public lands which would surround this monster sized project – the Big Cypress National Preserve to the south; Holeyland and Rotenberger Wildlife Management Areas and Storm Water Treatment Areas 3, 4, 5 and 6 to the east; the Dinner Island Wildlife Management Area and the Okaloacoochee State Forest to the north and west. In addition to direct loss of habitat, a plant of this size would also dramatically increase traffic and open up the entire area to sprawl, road building, and habitat fragmentation.

New land deals in Southern Florida could benefit rare cats if they’re mapped carefully

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — Florida panthers could get a bit more room to roam in the southern part of the state with a proposed expansion of the National Wildlife Refuge System in the region — but conservation groups says federal land managers are missing a key part of the conservation puzzle.

The proposed Headwaters of the Everglades National Wildlife Refuge would protect 150,000 acres of ranch lands north of Lake Okeechobee at a price tag of 700 million dollars. The patchwork quilt of properties created would include 50,000 acres purchased outright while a conservation easement would be placed on 100,000 additional acres to prevent development.

The plan is aimed at Everglades restoration, but wildlife advocates said that, if the project is planned right, it could be a huge benefit to on the country’s rarest animals. (more…)

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Florida panther kitten to be released

Posted on October 31, 2011 by Bob Berwyn

An endangered Florida panther. PHOTO BY RODNEY CAMMAUF, COURTESY THE NATIONAL PARK SERVICE.

Rare cats imperiled by habitat fragmentation

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY —A Florida panther kitten that was raised in a wildlife facility after its mother died will be released to the wild this week in Big Cypress National Preserve.

The wild cat, identified as K304, will be set free Nov. 1 at the Burns Lake Campground and Backcountry Access site off from Burns Lake Road. The road is located approximately six miles east of State Road 29 and 13 miles west of the Oasis Visitor Center on U. S. 41. Turn north on Burns Lake road, drive one mile and the campground/access point is on the left.

The public is invited to attend, however, no guarantee is made of seeing the cat beyond a brief glimpse as it runs into the woods.

Background on K304
On October 25, 2010, through on-going tracking activity within the Preserve, it was discovered that the radio-collar of female panther FP102 was emitting a mortality signal. Upon reaching the site of the signal, National Park Service biologists found the remains of the cat. A subsequent necropsy confirmed that FP102 had died from wounds received during a fight. Five months earlier the cat had give birth to two male kittens. After the death of FP102, one of the offspring, K304, was discovered orphaned. His sibling was never found.

Upon discovering K304 the National Park Service, working closely with other agencies, transported the kitten to the White Oak Conservation Center, a wildlife facility in northeastern Florida. At the facility K304 was cared for and housed in appropriate facilities with minimal human contact. Now K304, a young, healthy cat, is of the age that it can be released near the area it was born. (more…)

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Environment: Last stand for the Florida panther?

Posted on April 29, 2011 by Bob Berwyn

An endangered Florida panther. PHOTO BY RODNEY CAMMAUF, COURTESY THE NATIONAL PARK SERVICE.

With only about 100 panthers remaining in the wild, conservation groups push for critical habitat designation in court after 23 panthers were killed in 2010

By Bob Berwyn

SUMMIT COUNTY — Florida panthers are close to making their last stand in the swampy grasslands and forests of the Everglades. At least 23 panthers were killed last year and 11 have died in 2011. With only about 100 of the cats remaining in the wild, their survival may depend on the designation of critical habitat, a step the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has this refused to take. Read further information on Florida Panther mortality rates

But that may change. A coalition of environmental groups has filed an appeal in federal court, seeking to force the agency to protect what is left of the panthers rapidly dwindling habitat in the midst of sprawling development in South Florida. The animals only remain in about 5 percent of their historic range.

“We have a very limited population due to inbreeding depression,” said Michael Robinson, a conservation advocate with the Center of Biological Diversity. Robinson said the population was boosted by a temporary introduction of nine West Texas pumas that were subsequently removed from Florida after they reproduced. (more…)

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Wildlife: Trouble for the endangered species program?

Posted on March 17, 2011 by Bob Berwyn

A Florida-based U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service official who has been less than enthusiastic about protecting panthers has been promoted to a high-level position in the agency's endangered species program. PHOTO BY CONNIE BRANSILVER, U.S. FISH & WILDLIFE SERVICE.

Watchdog group claims Obama administration accommodates development at the expense of wildlife protection

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — A watchdog group based in Washington, D.C. charges that the Obama administration is putting development ahead of environmental protection by promoting a Florida-based regulator to a high-level position in the endangered species program.

The charges came in a press release from Public Employees or Environmental Responsibility, backed up by a series of documents and reports on Endangered Species Act implementation in Florida.

The group says that Paul Souza, currently the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service field supervisor for south Florida has approved numerous development projects in habitat for the vanishing Florida panther without ever once issuing a single “jeopardy” opinion, indicating harmful impact on wildlife covered by the Endangered Species Act. (more…)

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ORV plan for Florida’s Big Cypress reserve triggers lawsuit

Posted on March 13, 2011 by Bob Berwyn

An alligator rests in the swamps of Big Cypress. PHOTO COURTESY USGS.

Conservation groups claim new trails threaten endangered species like the Florida panther and indigo snake

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — Colorado is not the only place seeing conflicts between conservation and motorized recreation. In Florida, a coalition of environmental groups says it will challenge a federal plan to open up additional off-road vehicles trails in 146,000 acres of land added to  Big Cypress National Reserve in 1988.

Big Cypress has been operated as a multi-use area by by the National Park Service, providing access for ORV use and hunting. Click here to learn more about the Addition Lands.

But conservation groups say motorized use has resulted in severe damage to the area’s natural resources. In the lawsuit, the groups claim the federal government is not living up to its obligations to protect endangered species like the Florida panther and red-cockaded woodpecker, and threatened species, such as the Eastern indigo snake, which inhabit the area slated to be carved with ORV trails. (more…)

Filed under: biodiversity, endangered species, Environment, national parks, public lands, recreation, wetlands, wildlife | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment »

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