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Report shows increasing human contact with
Florida panthers
December 6, 2007
Contacts: Dani Moschella (FWC), 561-625-5122;
Tom MacKenzie (USFWS), 404-679-7291;
Layne Hamilton (USFWS), 239/353-8442, ext. 227
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) today
released the 2007 Interagency Florida Panther Response Team Report that
summarizes human-panther interactions investigated by the Interagency
Florida Panther Response Team between December 2003 and June 2007.
The team includes biologists, law enforcement officers
and other agency representatives from the USFWS, National Park Service
and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC).
As more humans move into panther habitat, the potential for
human-panther interactions increases. Therefore, the team
developed a plan to promote public safety and panther conservation.
Reported interactions included panther sightings and
encounters, including one involving a panther that was removed from the
wild because it was deemed a potential threat, and multiple domestic
animal depredations.
Additionally, the report summarizes outreach and
educational efforts completed by the team, as well the work of
partnering organizations and local government agencies, which provide
the public with the information and tools needed to live and recreate in
panther habitat. To view the report, visit
http://www.fws.gov/verobeach or
MyFWC.com/panther/.
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