Florida Panther National Wildlife Refuge
Writer/Producer: Shawn Holiday
Explore a refuge for the Florida panther that is also a place for people to visit. Although this shy creature is hard to spot, there is plenty of wildlife to view on the public trails. It also serves as a reminder about the importance of preserving the last of the Florida wilds.
Resources:
Florida Panther National Wildlife Refuge
Larry Richardson
Biologist
Florida Panther National Wildlife Refuge
3860 Tollgate Blvd.
Naples, FL 34114
(239)353-8442
floridapanther@fws.gov
Friends of the Florida Panther Refuge
floridapanther.org
Lisa Ostberg, president
lisa.ostberg@floridapanther.org
For Panther sightings, please call the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission at (800)404-3922
To buy a license plate that supports Florida wildlife, visit
WGCU PBS & NPR for Southwest Florida
#WGCU #FloridaPanther #WildLife
Florida Panther Encounter - 7/5/2014
There are only about 160 Florida Panthers in the wild, and we were fortunate to see this young one - on public lands from the front seat of our car. (This is the long, minimally edited version of our adventure.) Please support funding for environmental protection!
Panther on Alligator Alley
Watch closely! The panther is herded into a newly cut door in the fence by several people standing in front of the guardrail on busy Alligator Alley. The panther takes one look at the people lining the highway and smartly elects the safe escape route back into the preserve! Full story with photos:
Herding cats
This lucky Florida panther is no longer an “alley cat” thanks to the quick work of FWC panther biologist Mark Lotz. Construction workers reported a panther on the wrong side of the fence on a section of road known as Alligator Alley. Mark arrived on the scene and found the trapped feline hunkered down near the fence line. It had some scratches on its face where it had tried to run through the fence but otherwise appeared in good condition. Mark opened a section of fence (which he later repaired) to provide an escape route. With the help of FWC Law Enforcement Officer Lt. Dodd Bulger and Construction Supervisor Michael Fortner, Mark corralled the panther through the opening. The cat sprinted through the fence into the safety of the Florida Panther National Wildlife Refuge.
Vehicle strikes are the number one cause of Florida panther deaths in 2016. But there are ways you can help keep panthers and other wildlife safe!
Safe Roads for people and panthers:
For information on Living in Panther Country:
Florida Panther National Wildlife Refuge:
Florida Panther mortality information:
Video provided by Michael Fortner
Florida Panther at Corkscrew Swamp
for licensing or usage, please contact licensing@viralhog.com
Driving on State Road 29 from Immokalee, FL to Everglades City, Florida
State Road 29 begins at an intersection with U.S. Route 41 (Tamiami Trail) in the small community of Carnestown, located just 4 miles north of Everglades City. From there, it travels north along the western edge of the Big Cypress National Preserve and the eastern edge of the Fakahatchee Strand Preserve State Forest, which the road borders until it reaches Interstate 75 (Alligator Alley) at Miles City.
North of I-75, State Road 29 borders the Florida Panther National Wildlife Refuge to the west and continues to border the Big Cypress National Preserve up to a point just south of Sunniland.
SR 29 turns west briefly and back north through the city of Immokalee, a small farming town with large migrant populations. Just north of Immokalee, SR 29 intersects with State Road 82,
Florida Panther - Trail Camera - Big Cypress National Preserve, FL # 2
2018.03.14: Florida Panther and without radio tracking collar. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Service estimates that only 100-160 adult Panthers remain in the wild. The Florida Panther is on the Endangered Species List. I had this Trail Camera planted from 24 Feb - 24 Mar, less than 100 yards, along the east side of the Florida Trail. This stretch of the Florida Trail runs north of I-75 (Alligator Alley), at Mile Marker 63. The ground in this Cypress Tree Dome was extremely dry; drought conditions. So dry, that is area has high fire hazard conditions. The nearby water source for animals, runs along the Florida Trail, and is home to a number of Alligators. The water lines are visible on the Cypress Trees where the water levels are expected to be again in Summer. Since this footage was captured several days after Daylight Savings, the more accurate time was 8:14 am. I use Browning Special Ops Platinum Trail Cameras. I reported this Panther sighting to the Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission. I had two Trail Cameras close to one another at this location and they both captured this Panther.
Browning Spec Ops Platinum Trail Camera
Florida Panthers at Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary
Photographer Brian Hampton allowed us to share this rare trail cam footage of a female adult Florida panther and her three juvenile offspring walking through Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary in Southwest Florida on January 4, 2015. Florida's official state animal has been listed as a federally endangered species since 1967. Encounters with Florida panthers are rare, but we do encourage the public to report suspected sightings by using our online panther sighting registry. More information can be found by visiting our website: To see more of Brian's work, visit BrianHamptonPhotography.com.
Our panther research and conservation efforts are funded by the sale of our Florida panther license plates, so thank you to everyone who has invested in FWC panther research and conservation efforts over the years! To purchase a panther license plate, visit:
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Florida Panther Surprises Woman On a Nature Walk On a Boardwalk
It is the wildest thing I have ever seen. Several places in Florida have boardwalks elevated above swampy areas, and they are very cool places to walk on.
Watch as a Hurricane Rips A Florida Grassland Apart
Florida Hurricane 2016
Six Mile Cypress Slough Preserve Park in Fort Myers Florida
Walking at Six Mile Cypress Slough Preserve Park in Fort Myers, Florida. Admission is free, parking is $1/hour. This is a 3,500-acre park offering wildlife sightings, a butterfly garden & boardwalk trails through the wetlands. It is a marshy environment and a great place to see alligators, anhingas (bird), turtles, snakes, and more.
The boardwalk trail is located at 751 Penzance Blvd, Fort Myers, Florida
Tags:
Fort Myers Florida
Six Mile Cypress Slough Preserve Park
Alligator alley and The Crystal. Florida's hidden trails and local stops
Alligator alley and The Crystal. Florida's backwoods hidden trails and stops. On a back trail near Alligator alley is a local stop over known as the Crystal. check it out
Driving on State Road 29 from Hendry to Glades County, Florida
State Road 29 (SR 29) is a state highway that runs north–south through Southwest Florida. A rural road, it runs mostly through uninhabited farmland in its northern half, and along wetlands in its southern half.
North end of State Road 29
The road's northern terminus is an intersection with US 27 (unsigned SR 25), just south of Palmdale. Locally, it is also known as Main Street and Collier Avenue. SR 29 then runs through the center of the city of LaBelle before continuing due south to Immokalee, another small farming town with large migrant populations. From Immokalee, SR 29 travels along the western edge of the Big Cypress National Preserve and the eastern edge of the Florida Panther National Wildlife Refuge and the Fakahatchee Strand Preserve State Forest before reaching its southern terminus at US 41 (Tamiami Trail) just north of Everglades City.
Florida panther hit and killed by car in Collier County
Another panther is headed to Gainesville for a necropsy after it was hti and killed in Collier County. Florida Fish and Wildlife says the 4-year-old male was found on Nov. 8 on Immokalee Road. This marks the 20th panther roadkill this year. Florida set a record last year when 34 panthers were killed on local roads. Only about 280 panthers remain in the wild.
Florida Panther Raw Footage
B-roll footage for media use. Please note our Creative Commons Attribution. Video by Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC)
SWAMP TOUR - Ebro Florida
Less than an hour north of Panama City Beach, FL is the Choctawhatchee River Swamp.
You feel, see, hear the silence, loneliness, adventure and danger of the swamp as if you were the only human alive.
Panthers eat well but still die badly in SW Florida, December 2010
This was filmed near Divide, Colorado on August 8, 2010) This clip is from:
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12.20.2010 - The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) has confirmed at least six panther depredations since the beginning of December in the Golden Gate Estates area of Collier County. In the past week alone, panthers have killed several goats and a pig.
Other depredation reports have come from the Immokalee area. Some of the most recent depredations occurred on properties less than three-quarters of a mile from each other, off Golden Gate Boulevard, according to the FWC. Over the past weekend, four goats were killed east of Everglades Boulevard. At the time of all the depredations, the domestic animals were not secured in predator-proof enclosures. (More)
11.3.20010 - Biologists capture, collar male panther near recent calf depredations
10.29.2010 -Biologists to capture Florida panther suspected in recent Collier County calf depredations
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12/22/2010 -
1:50 P.M. — The carcass of a radio-collared male Florida panther, designated FP173, were collected at 1 p.m. today on Lee County Port Authority mitigation land north of Corkscrew Road.
At this time, the cause of death is unknown.
Approximately 5 years old, the panther had two testicles, no cowlick and did not have a kinked tail, indicating the animal did not suffer from genetic defects as a result of inbreeding.
This is the 22nd panther mortality for 2010. At least 16 of those deaths were caused by a vehicle.
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12/22/2010 - (Excerpt)
The panther showed no outward signs of being hit by a vehicle, attacked by another panther or foul play; the cause of death is unknown, said Florida panther project scientist Dave Onorato.
The carcass is being taken to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission wildlife research lab in Gainesville for a necropsy to determine a cause of death.
The latest panther death brings the number of panther deaths so far this year to 22, two short of last year's 24 deaths.
Of those, 16 panthers were killed in collisions with vehicles, one panther short of the record set in 2009.
On Sunday, wildlife biologists recovered a dead 9-month-old male panther along County Road 846 in Hendry County east of Immokalee. It had been hit by a vehicle.
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12/17/2010 - (Excerpt)
Early next year the state will seek designs for a Roadside Animal Detection System -- RADS. As envisioned, this system will employ some sort of motion detector that, when triggered by a panther, will turn on a flashing sign or something similar to warn oncoming traffic. Such systems have been used in Arizona, Wyoming, Washington state, Wisconsin, and Minnesota to warn drivers of approaching elk and deer. Some of these systems trigger a warning sign when animals cross an infrared or laser beam, others are triggered by detecting body heat.
In some cases, collisions have dropped 97 percent, according to Marcel Huijser, a research ecologist at Montana State University who develops the systems. While panthers present more of a ground-hugging target, Mr. Huijser doesn't think that will be a problem.
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12/12/2010 - (Excerpts)
GOLDEN GATE ESTATES — Environmentalists are wild about a new privately funded road crossing that's expected to save the lives of Florida panthers and other wildlife.
The developer will spend more than $1.3 million to build the crossing in a rural area where many endangered Florida panthers have lost their lives trying to get get across the road. Construction is under way.
Also see:
Wildlife Activism
Writer/Producer: Rosie Emery
People are often drawn into environmental activism by their passion for a particular species. The individuals featured in this segment are all passionate about wildlife and they share similar concerns for the continued preservation of vital habitats. Through their work with organizations and as individual citizens, they are helping to ensure that the endangered Florida panther and the manatee continue to survive here in Southwest Florida.
Jennifer Hecker uses her knowledge and experience as a professional lobbyist and advocate to represent the Conservancy of Southwest Florida on panther conservation issues. Bobbie Lee Gruninger devotes much of her precious free time to attend meetings that will ensure the protection and preservation of panther habitat.
Their love of manatees led Wendy Rex and Anita Buff to volunteer at Lee County's Manatee Park Recreational facility. Today they both work at the Park and continue to educate the public about these gentle giants of the ocean.
Resources:
Florida Panther
Jennifer Hecker
Natural Resource Policy Manager
Conservancy of Southwest Florida
Tel: 239 262 0304
conservancy.org
Bobbie Lee Gruninger
BobbieLee.Gruninger@nchmd.org
Florida Fish and Wildlife Education website:
floridaconservation.org/panther
Florida Panther National Wildlife Refuge:
fws.gov/floridapanther/
Manatees
Manatee Hotline:1-888-404-3922
Denise Boyd
Research Associate
Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission
Fish and Wildlife Research Institute
Southwest Field Lab
Tel: 941 613-0944
denise.boyd@myfwc.com
Anita Buff
Store Manager
Manatee Park Recreational Facility
Tel: 239 728 3422
leeparks.org
Wendy Rex
Staff Naturalist
Manatee Park Recreational Facility
Tel: 239 810 4742
leeparks.org
Save the Manatee Club
savethemanatee.org
Florida Equals State Record With 19 Panthers Killed on Roads
A Florida panther killed by a car this week became the 19th road fatality this year for the endangered big cat species - matching the most on record in the state - although officials said the toll reflects an uptick in the predator's population. State wildlife officers said on Friday that the 4-year-old panther died on Thursday near Immokalee, Florida, in the southwestern part of state. That would break the record set in 2012, said Mark Lotz, a panther biologist for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
Incredible Value: New Homes in Ave Maria, FL