Florida Panther Species

A group of researchers collected data to support the theory that the overpopulation of snakes is killing off the mammal population. Ashley Townsend, National Geographic writes, “the python population has continued to grow at a remarkable rate and has caused great distress to the park 's ecosystem.” For this study, the researchers at the South Florida Water Management District recorded the rates of live and dead mammals during a nocturnal road survey and compared it to the 1996-1997 road surveys. Scientists for the South Florida Management District, stated, “Researchers noted that the animals in the park were dying at a greater rate since the python population has gotten so enormous.”

There have been purchases of lands that are becoming protected for habitat space, as well as the large scale recoveries of forests that were devastated and ravaged due to over logging. The recovery of our forests will allow for an increase in the population of prey for these panthers and allow a flourishing ecosystem to help them. Public opinion has also changed. From being scared of them and killing them, people are now aware of the potential that this species could go extinct and have made efforts towards wildlife conservation and more legal protection that is backed by the Endangered Species Act. Furthermore, The Florida Panther Recovery Team has continued to work hard in preservation efforts as well as being able to now correctly assess habitats that are safe and productive for the Florida Panther to once again grow in. Unfortunately, only about 11% of reintroductions end in the species successfully recreating and increasing in numbers. Increases in technology is also however helping this team accurately track and study the patterns of the Panther in hopes of being able to find ways in to increase the odds of the species surviving once it is reintroduced into an

[Thesis and preview]: Today I am going to share with you a quick history lesson, talk about where these animals currently roam, and explain several threats that this growing population currently faces.

When animals are voluntary or involuntary let into the wild many native species can become threatened by animals that, in the foreign ecosystem, have no natural predators. Pythons in Florida is a great

However, they disagree on whether or not it is harming the wildlife populations in those areas. Terris says “roads and sprawling neighborhoods are replacing pristine wildlife habitats at an alarming pace, putting the survival and reproduction of plants and animals at risk.” Terris also believes it may be “the problem for U.S. wildlife in the 21st century”. (Terris) According to Terris, one victim of sprawl is the Florida panther, which has been reduced to a population of 30 to 50 adults. Furthermore, in the Sonoran Desert many plant species are affected, which also affects the animals that rely on those plants. She goes on to give numerous examples of animals and plants that are being harmed that spreads across the U.S., supporting the fact it is widespread.

To conclude, the FWC (Florida Wildlife Conservation Commission) also wants to mind people that any exotic pet should never be released into the Florida waters, or land. People need to realize that when you own an exotic animal and don't want the responsibility of caring for it anymore, you need to take it to an animal shelter or a good owner that has the ability and supplies to fill their needs. Letting them go, into the wild could be detrimental to other animals or plants in the

recently become detrimental to many wildlife species. These house cats are responsible for the deaths of

One can conclude that the alligator has been superbly adaptable to change. In the late 1800’s it became very common to hunt alligators for their skin. The “gator” population began to decrease and even disappeared from certain areas around the southern east side of the United States (a place where they used to thrive by the millions). It is estimated that between 1930 and 1940, more than 1 million alligators were killed in Florida. In the late 1940’s people began to fear that alligators would become extinct which is why laws were passed in states where alligators lived, only allowing the hunting of “gators” during certain times of the year and with specific permits. In the late 1950’s people realized that the laws were not being held with high standards and states such as Louisiana declared it illegal to kill alligators. The campaign to save the alligator was finally working and by the mid 1970’s the alligator was taken off the U.S. endangered species list. Today, alligators are thriving, however certain geographical areas such as the everglades, are becoming more populated by humans; thus, increasing interactions between humans and alligators. This could destroy their habitat and endanger the

Humans have caused another extinction, one that could possibly take us down in the process, species are exponentially going extinct because of habitat loss, species exportation, and invasive species bullying native species. On the other hand, scientists are trying to safe guard native species, keep animals in captivity whether it be for the animals well-being or for research, and widespread invasion. In this essay I will be comparing and contrasting “What Everglades Pythons and Other Invasive Species are Trying to Tell Us,” by Julia Whitty and “The Sixth Extinction,” by Jeff Corwin.

As an invasive species, the Burmese python has an immense impact on the native populations of the Everglades. In the last 20 years, observations of mammals in the Everglades have declined by 95% while the number of non-native Burmese pythons in the park has significantly increased (Sovie et al. 2016). Data from game cameras used in a study by Willson support this observation, showing the spatial pattern of mammal abundance being inversely correlated with spatial expansion of Burmese pythons in the Everglades (Willson 2017).

Attributed to the release of the exotic pet, the encroachment of the voracious species has already demonstrated its appetite for the indigenous fauna of the Everglades. It is now feared that with their migration to the Florida Keys, the

Since then, between deforestation, unregulated hunting prior to 1950’s, habitat loss and habitat fragmentation, have resulted in the loss of a substantial portion of the Florida black bear population and 80% of its habitat. As a result, in 1974 the black bear was listed by the state of Florida as a threatened species in through-out the state with the exception of The Apalachicola National Forest and Baker and Columbia counties. At that time all hunting for Black Bears in the state of Florida was suspended until future notice.

A cypress is a long, thin stretch of tropical hardwood swaps. In the Everglades National Park Florida panthers are most concentrated in an area called the " Hole in the Donut". Although there are some panthers living in the Everglades the Big Cypress Swap is more to their liking and because of this there are more panthers in the Big Cypress than in the Everglades. Since the majority of the panther population is in the Big Cypress, hunters are upset with some of these efforts such as the ban of all hunting dogs, all-terrain vehicles and airboats in the preserve which are to help aid the survival of the panther. Because unlike the Everglades where hunting of deer and boar is allowed, in the Big Cypress it is not, and the Big Cypress is fully stocked with both of those animals.

Animal extinction is big a threat to some animal species. According to the text “ The Impact of Animal Protection”, many nature parks have supervised breeding programs that allow numbers to increase. Many people think that animals should be able to repopulate by themselves. Keeping animals protected has proven to be beneficial and increase the populations of endangered animals. According to the text “The Impact of Animal Protection” these programs have helped bring several animals - black footed

Bill Freedmen, author of “Endangered Species—Human Causes Of Extinction and Endangerment” notes, “scientists approximate that present extinction rates are 1,000 to 10,000 times higher than the average natural extinction rate.” These distressing numbers should be acted upon to save the endangered species and avoid the catastrophic change to this planet if these species were to become extinct. In order to produce change, people need to recognize that habitat loss, climate change, and poaching are all factors in why our animal species are going extinct.