Defenders' Experts
Public Perception of Florida Panthers
Hundreds of years ago, at a time when European settlers faced harsh new elements in their quest to survive in a wild and young America, panthers were viewed as a mortal threat to humans, livestock, and game animals. As a result, panthers were persecuted, hunted-down, and killed by the dozens.
Today, some of these perceptions still exist, even though we as a human population now dominate the land. Fearful statements may get attention on newspaper headlines, but they rarely reflect the realities of living with panthers.
In Florida, where there has never been a panther attack on a person, several panthers have killed livestock and pets. As a modern society, we are fully capable of protecting our pets and livestock and preventing human-panther interactions and to not do so would be irresponsible on our part.
We can overcome fears by understanding panther behavior and their role in the web of life. We can learn to live with panthers, and all wildlife, by applying this knowledge to developing effective measures to protect livestock and pets, and to preventing human-panther interactions.
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