What a beautiful animal! May its species' habitat remain dense and remote.
Georgia wildlife authorities are scratching their heads in amazement this week -- and so am I.
After decades of dismissing recurring reports of panther sightings -- often by hunters -- it turns out the big cats are living among us after all. Or at least, one of them was, until last fall.
Genetic tests confirmed last week that a 140-pound panther shot and killed by a hunter Nov. 16 in Troup County was not -- as biologists first said -- an escaped pet.
Not only was it a wild panther, but tests performed by the National Cancer Institute's Laboratory of Genomic Diversity in Maryland proved it was a Florida panther -- and a federally protected endangered species.
"Genetically, it is a Florida panther from the population down in southern Florida," said Robin Hill, a spokeswoman for Georgia's Wildlife Resources Division. "They were even able to genetically confirm who its father was."
The Florida panther (Puma concolor coryi) is the last subspecies of cougar still surviving in the eastern United States, with a dwindling population of only 100 to 120 animals, said Paul Souza, field supervisor of the South Florida Ecological Services Office.
What was this one doing in Georgia, where it wandered beneath a hunter's deer stand during a muzzleloader hunt on West Point Lake? We may never know.
Although the giant cats once roamed the entire Southeast, the Florida panthers -- in theory -- are now confined to dense swamps in the Everglades in south Florida.
I measured the distance from Naples, Fla., to LaGrange, Ga., near where the cat was killed. It is almost 600 miles -- and a 10-hour drive by Interstate.
This cat somehow managed to make the trip undetected. At the time it was killed, it was so healthy that biologists speculated it was a cared-for pet.
Its presence in Georgia raises many questions, but the most pressing one is whether there could be other cats in our state -- or in nearby South Carolina, where the Department of Natural Resources routinely gets about 100 reported sightings each year.
"As far as other cats being here, we just don't know," Hill said. "It is our policy that if we have credible evidence we check out each and every claim. But if someone just calls and says they saw something, we can't do much. If they have photos, or there are big cat tracks, we certainly check out those."
The confirmation of the panther's Florida-strain origins also present a dilemma for law enforcement officials -- and for the hunter who decided to pull the trigger.
If the panther was proven to be an escaped pet, there would have been nothing illegal about shooting it. However, the Florida panther is a federally endangered species.
Hill said the matter has been referred to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Office of Law Enforcement.
She was unsure whether charges could be filed.
"Technically, it's an endangered species," she said. "When the gentleman shot it, the first thing he did was to call us and we recovered the carcass at that point, so it wasn't a situation where there was anything nefarious."
If additional cats are seen, however, the best thing to do is leave it alone, or perhaps try to get a photo, or document its presence through physical evidence, such as tracks, droppings or kills.
One of Georgia's best-known panther visits occurred in 1995, when 10 western cats were fitted with tracking collars and released in northern Florida as part of an experiment to determine if that region could be repopulated.
One of the male cats ended up in Burke County, Ga., before traveling along Brier Creek into McDuffie County. Eventually, it made its way to the Clarks Hill Wildlife Management Area near Thurmond Lake, where biologists recaptured it in February of that year and returned it to Florida.
During its travels through Georgia, the wandering panther never generated a single reported sighting.
Reach Rob Pavey at 868-1222, ext. 119 or rob.pavey@augustachronicle.com.
Comments
What a beautiful animal! May its species' habitat remain dense and remote.
Saw one in Effingham County in 2002. The DNR said I was mistaken also but there was no mistaking what I saw.
you know its sad just cause a man has a gun they think they can kill whatever they want it wasnt bothering anyone so why kill something that pretty
"Let's go deer hunting" "Oh, no deer, guess I'll shoot anything else I see" Hope he gets fined a bundle!
The "hunter" probably won't get in trouble, but emergencyfan is correct, he should be fined a LARGE bundle! The cat just wandered past his deer stand (well, that is how the AC reported it) and he shot it. The cat wasn't aggressive, the cat may never have known he was there or more than likely it did, but he was no threat to it and the big cat was moving on. That is really a shame, they are such beautiful animals and getting more rare each year.
We lived in central florida for 2 yrs prior to coming here last year, and we have heard several stories about panthers being seen on I-4, I-75 in that area of Florida when we were there..so its conceivable that the panther made it all the way here.
If I was a hunter in a tree and there was a big cat below me, depending on what it was doing, I might shoot at it too if it appeared that I was in danger. Panthers have been known to attack humans without provocation. Obviously the guy didnt know it was a Florida panther...heck even the DNR folks didnt know for almost a year. Unfortunately whats done is done.
Considering he was shooting black powder, he has only one shot. So if you only have one shot and and 8 to 12 ft up in a tree what do you do?
I am almost positive that one was dead beside the road in Jefferson county last week, it was way to big and long to be a Bob Cat, this cat looked like it weighed over 100 pounds and it had just been struck by a car.
I've seen one in Burke County while dear hunting. Scared me to death. If I'd have been in a deer stand and saw one, I'd have done the same thing this guy did. Because you'd wonder if he was behind you, stalking you, until you got back to your truck.
When the DNR brought them up to "North Florida", some were released in South Georgia.
And can't they just clone it? They've got all the tissue they need.
It is sad that a deer hunter shoots and kills whatever they see while hunting.
I hope that &%#$ gets fined and imprisoned for killing this beautiful, healthy animal. How dare he think it is ok to kill a creature whose environment he invaded to do his so called hunting. (sitting up in a treehouse with a gun is considered sporting?) This story infuriates me.
We never used to have armadillos here either. And, justus4, what the h#ll does the "r" word have to do with this story!??? OMFG!
I would have let the animal walk, if it had not posed an immediate threat to me. But I can see Grasshopper's point. If the animal had charged the hunter, he might not have been able to pull off the shot and could have been injured/killed by the animal. Too bad for the cat. Beautiful creature, it was.
The man should be prosecuted for thrill killing an endangered species. And he deserves jail time. Set an example for other in the woods with a weapon.
I wonder how many of you would be singing this "crucify the hunter" song if this 140lbs cat was walking around your neighborhood with your little kids playing outside. It's a wild animal with a natural instinct to hunt and kill. How do we know it hadn't been tracking the hunter for its next meal? Me, my family or a big a#& panther...I choose me and mine.
If the hunter had not killed the invader, and it had gone on and killed a child on a farm in the area, the bleeding hearts would have been much pappier. Folks do you understand this was a walking preying killer? Thats what it does for a living, it kills things, it dosen't go to McDonalds when it is hungry, it will eat you. I would have loved to have seen some of the posters trying to pet and calling to the beautiful thing. In fact knowing the hunting ways of this beast, could it be the reason for some missing children in the state?
js; We have a panther that walks the creek behind our house. We've also had a bear swipe a couple of goats. ( they weren't hurt that bad, but goats easliy go into shock, and they died). The Dept of Natural resources set up traps at a neighbor's house for the bear, as far as we know, the panther still walks the creek. We didn't try to kill either one.
(1) The hunter was in the tree and apparently in no danger (according to the story). (2) No one even knew there were wild panthers in the area, so it seems unlikely that it had been killing livestock and was obviously not stalking these mysterious unnamed children everyone is so worried about. (3) The "hunter" did not have a license to kill it and should be fined out the [filtered word]. If he had reported it instead of killing it, the proper authorities would have had the opportunity to trap and move it if they considered it a danger. You don't just kill something because you have a gun in your hand. Another poster child for gun control--a big thank you from those of us who own guns and choose to use them responsibly.
Wow, what a bunch of sick minded folks I see here. I don't think some of you will be satisfied unless the hunter is set up and shot as well. At no point did the hunter have any reason to believe this was an endangered species and based on DNR's own statements, had no reason to believe the cat belonged where it was. Had it been an escaped "pet" and ultimately hauled off some child playing in the yard, you would all be screaming that someone needs to do something, even going so far as to want the animal killed. Get a life people. The hunter did not elect to shoot the animal "simply because it wandered past his stand" as some would suggest. To make the decision that the hunter did, I'm certain meant he weighed several outcomes. I know, in your tiny minds however, he is little more than one of those gun toting nuts that must be eliminated from "good society". I feel sad for you emergencyfan and others like you. You are a very sad lot indeed.
Just tired - He did not have a hunting license to shoot the cat. It's a simple fact of law. You can be as sad as you want, it won't change the fact he had no right, morally, ethically or otherwise to shoot this particular animal (pet or wild). Neither he nor anyone else was in any immediate danger from this animal. I guess you'd prefer a world without rules where you can just go and and shoot where you want, what you want, whenever you want. THAT would be "good society"? Thanks, I prefer mine where people are held accountable for irresponsible and illegal actions.
Has anyone heard of a set of laws that once were called fence laws ? The DNR does not belive anyone who reports a cat or other animals from non agency personel . As it is without DNR guidence in the home range of panthers one would have to conclude that the panther was a escaped pet at that time . Now they and we know Better . A reference to them in the game laws might be needed and a little more honesty about the true ranges of protected species in order .
A poster wrote he'd shot a big cat stalking around in his neighborhood. Calls himself saving little kids from becoming the cat's next meal. That's really sad. Because little kids are in greater danger from guns than big cats. Guns have killed more of them.
whatever!
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