By Becca Bryan, Friends of the Florida Panther Refuge
Children are great, whether you call them kids or kittens.
The endangered Florida panther is the official state animal, as voted by Florida schoolchildren in 1982. Those bright, caring young individuals had a few choices but chose the elusive, gorgeous Florida panther. Eight years later, in 1990, the Florida Legislature designated the third Saturday of March as Save the Florida Panther Day and cemented it into the state statutes. This special day in the state is a call to renew Florida’s commitment to the conservation of Florida panthers and their habitat. This year, Save the Florida Panther Day is on March 18.
Florida Panther Background
Florida panthers used to range across the southeastern U.S. but are now confined to a single breeding population in southwest Florida. It is estimated that there are 120 to 230 adult and subadult Florida panthers in southwest Florida, primarily in Collier, Lee, and Hendry counties.
Florida Population Keeps Increasing
As of February 2024, the state’s population is almost 23 million, and it is projected to rise to almost 25 million by 2029. Collier County’s population is nearly 398,000, Lee County’s is over 822,000, and Hendry County’s population is 39,000. More residents mean more habitat loss to land development. More vehicle kills (the number one killer of panthers) due to more roads being built and more vehicles using them. You can see where this is leading and why Save the Florida Panther Day is a call to renew panther conservation activities.
Panther Partners Gather on Save the Florida Panther Day
Friends of the Florida Panther Refuge and our many conservation partners gather to inform and educate the public about our stunning, silent, and usually intrepid Florida panthers. We extoll their habitat, like the Florida Panther NWR, and remind visitors what they can do to advocate for the state cat. We remind them what the threats are, including vehicle strikes, habitat loss, and fragmentation from greatly increasing land development. Fortunately, the state passed the Florida Wildlife Corridor last year, which covers 18 million acres, with 10 million protected federal, state, local, and conservation lands – more space for Florida panthers to roam northward.
Everyone Can Be a Panther Advocate
Many children, people, clubs, homeowner associations, and companies ask the Friends to speak or send information about what they can do to raise awareness of the Florida panther and its threats. We oblige them with an abundance of source materials and often relay the story of the Refuge’s popular female and model mom, “Broketail.”
“Broketail” was born and raised in the Refuge. She has mated and birthed several litters of kittens there. She’s taught her kittens how to traverse the Refuge and has spent a great deal of time convincing them that it is okay to walk through a wildlife underpass. With each new litter, she reminds those of us who treasure our state animals that we can still do more to protect and conserve them.
Everyone can participate in Save the Florida Panther Day activities by speaking up for the endangered Florida panther population, no matter where you are. The more voices there are, the louder the message will be. Kids are especially encouraged, even those with decades of life experience.