© 2024 Central Florida Public Media. All Rights Reserved.
90.7 FM Orlando • 89.5 FM Ocala
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Officials: Florida panther struck and killed by vehicle, fifteen have died this year

Photo: Flickr Creative Commons
Photo: Flickr Creative Commons

LEHIGH ACRES, Fla. (AP) — An endangered Florida panther has died after being struck by a vehicle.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission says it’s the 13th panther death attributed to fatal collisions, out of 15 total deaths this year.

The remains of the 4-month-old female panther were found Thursday in Lee County on a rural road near Lehigh Acres.

Florida panthers once roamed the entire Southeast, but now their habitat mostly is confined to a small region of Florida along the Gulf of Mexico. Up to 230 Florida panthers remain in the wild.