The Interview: Florida panther recovery efforts update.
When the Florida Panther was listed as an endangered species in 1967 on the first federal list, this iconic species was down for the count, with only 12 to 20 individuals isolated in a breeding range at the southern tip of the state. Extensive efforts have been made by the state and federal government, conservation groups and the people of Florida to recover this beloved wild cat. To find out more about the ongoing recovery of Florida’s official state animal, the Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board turns to Elizabeth Fleming, a senior representative of Defenders of Wildlife, who has worked for 14 years on panther recovery in our state. A full transcript can be found at OrlandoSentinel.com/Opinion.
Why is the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service undertaking a “status review” of the Florida panther? The Endangered Species Act requires that the status of an endangered species be reviewed every five years to assess how the recovery effort is going. After the comprehensive review of all available information, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service may recommend a change in listing status, but a formal public process, including peer review of the science and a public comment period, will be required.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service says it will review the “taxonomic status” of the panther. What does that mean? The taxonomic status describes the uniqueness of a group of organisms. A status review determines whether that group is unique enough to be considered its own species, a subspecies, or a population of an existing species. Puma, cougar, mountain lion, panther and catamount are all used to describe Puma concolor. Some recent genetics work has indicated that all puma subspecies in North America are genetically very similar. This would suggest that Florida panthers are not different from pumas found elsewhere in North America. So some might argue that the Florida panther is not at risk of extinction because it’s not a valid subspecies. But others have argued that other factors, including morphology and the geographic isolation of the Florida panther, should be assigned greater weight before concluding that the Florida panther is not a subspecies. We also should keep in mind that the Florida panther is the last remaining population of pumas that once spanned all of the Eastern U.S. If the wildlife service determines that the Florida panther is not a distinct subspecies of Puma concolor, we expect it to reclassify the panther as a “distinct population segment” that retains full protection.
Can you bring us up to date on how the recovery of Florida panthers is going? Many years of concerted conservation actions are paying off. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission revised the population-range estimate for adult panthers to 120 to 230. While the count is improving, overall it is still quite small and boxed in to the southern part of the state. We recently reached a milestone when agencies documented the presence of three female panthers, one of which had kittens, north of the Caloosahatchee River, in the southwestern part of the state. While several males have crossed the river in recent years, these females show that the panthers are moving into new territory farther north in the state. But it is not easy for these wide-ranging cats: Fatal collisions with motor vehicles take a devastating toll and make it difficult for panthers to expand their range.
Does the Florida panther still need Endangered Species Act protections? While Florida panthers are recovering, they still face serious threats, including loss of habitat, road mortality and lack of human tolerance that can lead to conflict. Public lands in South Florida are not extensive enough to support the panther population, which is thought to be near or at carrying capacity within the available habitat south of the Caloosahatchee River. Recovery depends on the ability to move northward, and the willingness of private landowners to share the landscape. This native cat, which was present when European settlers arrived, deserves its rightful place in the natural environment.