Protecting Panthers and Their Habitat

Fewer than 100 Florida panthers are left in the U.S. today. Once ranging across eight southeastern states, they are now isolated in south Florida – the last remaining population of cougars east of the Mississippi River.

Unchecked development has pushed panthers into a tiny fraction of their historic range and increases the possibility of panther-human interactions. It has also fragmented the remaining habitat so that panthers are forced to cross dangerous highways to find food and shelter. Without large areas of continuous habitat, the Florida panther and other wildlife that depend on that habitat could be lost forever.

Defenders of Wildlife is committed to protecting panthers through habitat protection in Florida and through reestablishment of panthers into their historic range. Defenders is also working with wildlife agencies that are required to protect and recover the panther under the mandate of the Endangered Species Act. Defenders' Florida Director, Laurie Macdonald, has been appointed to the Florida Panther Technical Advisory Council.

You can also help protect panthers and their habitat. In this website you will learn more about panther facts and history,  what threats panthers are facing, protection measures, and how you can help save this endangered wild cat.

Read the Defenders magazine article "The Fall of the Cat of God," and learn how a real estate boom threatens the rare Florida panther. Read the Defenders of Wildlife brochure "Florida Panther: Big Cat of America's Southeast Wild Lands."

Defenders of Wildlife's Florida panther protection work is generously supported by a grant from The Freed Foundation.

The Florida panther is a subspecies of cougar, also known as puma, mountain lion or catamount. Cougars were historically found throughout the United States, but are now extinct east of the Mississippi.

 This particular subspecies, Felis concolor coryi, is now found only in the southern tip of Florida.  Map From Florida Panther Net.

Panthers utilize a variety of habitats, from forested uplands to cypress swamps. A critical factor in their habitat is adequate cover, necessary for hiding and stalking their prey. As solitary hunters, they make kills by stealth, rather than through cooperative packs.

The most critical threat to the Florida panther is the devastating loss of habitat. Pushed out by urban, agricultural and industrial development, they remain only in isolated pockets of degraded habitat, fragmented by roads and highways that pose an additional threat to the wide-ranging panther.

Vehicle collisions are a major cause of death for the panther; an indirect effect of the loss of habitat.  Between 1978 and 1994, 20 panther deaths (12 males and 8 females) and six injuries were documented from collisions with cars and trucks.

To alleviate the problem, underpasses were constructed when Alligator Alley was converted to I-75 in 1993, to aid the crossing of panthers and other wildlife. A smaller design more suited for two-lane highways, was developed and installed on State Road 29 north of I-75. Crossings have reduced the number of accidents, but have not completely restored habitat continuity, as female panthers are reluctant to cross major roads or use the underpasses.

Wildlife crossings can be extremely beneficial towards increasing permeability and expanding habitat, and they have aided the efforts to save the Florida panther. However, this situation makes the case that crossings are not a panacea. Even with crossings, continued development and degradation of the panther’s habitat will certainly drive the species to extinction.

SIXTY FOUR different names, all depending on what part of the world you are in. I, personally, raised a Montana wide tailed cougar..5th generation caged.....and it was (behind raising my daughters) the MOST AMAZING EXPERIENCE I have EVER encountered!! He was definitely harder than a house cat to raise, but I wouldn't have traded it for the world!! I ALSO went through the challenge, when he was 4 yrs. old. I came out of the cage bleeding, but I DID come out of the cage!! (6" gash(scar, now) where his tooth got me and scars from where he tried to disembowel me, but it WAS a trip to raise him!!!!)

 In these pictures you have here, I can see ALOT of the cat that I raised. As far as seeing one in the wild....well, we have one around this area...female, can hear her when she's in heat....and when I  heard her, my first thought was, "SHE"S NOT in a cage!" I promptly went inside!! LOL! the mountain lion actually has May 31, 2007 6:54 AM

SIXTY FOUR different names, all depending on what part of the world you are in. I, personally, raised a Montana wide tailed cougar..5th generation caged.....and it was (behind raising my daughters) the MOST AMAZING EXPERIENCE I have EVER encountered!! He was definitely harder than a house cat to raise, but I wouldn't have traded it for the world!! I ALSO went through the challenge, when he was 4 yrs. old. I came out of the cage bleeding, but I DID come out of the cage!! (6" gash(scar, now) where his tooth got me and scars from where he tried to disembowel me, but it WAS a trip to raise him!!!!)

 In these pictures you have here, I can see ALOT of the cat that I raised. As far as seeing one in the wild....well, we have one around this area...female, can hear her when she's in heat....and when I  heard her, my first thought was, "SHE"S NOT in a cage!" I promptly went inside!! LOL! the mountain lion actually has May 31, 2007 6:54 AM

SIXTY FOUR different names, all depending on what part of the world you are in. I, personally, raised a Montana wide tailed cougar..5th generation caged.....and it was (behind raising my daughters) the MOST AMAZING EXPERIENCE I have EVER encountered!! He was definitely harder than a house cat to raise, but I wouldn't have traded it for the world!! I ALSO went through the challenge, when he was 4 yrs. old. I came out of the cage bleeding, but I DID come out of the cage!! (6" gash(scar, now) where his tooth got me and scars from where he tried to disembowel me, but it WAS a trip to raise him!!!!)

 In these pictures you have here, I can see ALOT of the cat that I raised. As far as seeing one in the wild....well, we have one around this area...female, can hear her when she's in heat....and when I  heard her, my first thought was, "SHE"S NOT in a cage!" I promptly went inside!! LOL!

Alternate name: Cougar/Puma/Florida Panther

Family: Felidae, Cats view all from this family

Description A large, unspotted cat with a relatively small head and a long, dark-tipped tail. Pale brown to tawny above; white overlaid with buff below. Dark spot at base of whiskers. Ears short and rounded, with dark backs. Legs long and heavy; feet large. Juvenile buff with black spots.L 6–9' (1.5–2.75 m); T 21–37" (53–92 cm); HF 8 3/4–12" (22–31 cm); Wt 75–275 lb (34–125 kg).

Endangered Status Two subspecies of the Mountain Lion are on the U.S. Endangered Species List. The Eastern Puma is classified as endangered throughout the eastern U.S., and the Florida Panther is classified as endangered in Florida. Because the Mountain Lion requires isolated or undisturbed game-rich wilderness, it has declined or been exterminated in much of the habitat where it once thrived early in the 20th century. Its habitat was overtaken by development in many areas, and its main prey, the White-tailed Deer, disappeared over much of its range. For many years, this large wildcat was pursued by bounty hunters and persecuted as a threat to livestock. In recent years, there have been a few sightings of animals or tracks in Canada’s Maritime Provinces and in upper New England, New York State, and elsewhere in the East, but most reports have turned out to be false. Radio-tracking is being used to study the behavior of Florida Panthers, and an office has been established to investigate reports of Eastern Puma sightings in the southern Appalachians. Currently the species is fully protected where rare, and classified as a game animal where abundant.

Warning Occasionally Mountain Lions have been known to injure or even kill people, usually children, but they tend to avoid humans unless cornered or extremely hungry.

Similar Species Jaguar is spotted. Jaguarundi is much smaller and shorter-legged.

Breeding No fixed mating season; 1–6 young usually born in midsummer every other year. Gestation 82–98 days. Newborn weighs about 14 oz (400 g).

Habitat Originally varied; now generally mountainous, semi-arid terrain; subtropical and tropical forests and swamps.

Range Western North America from British Columbia and s Alberta south through w Wyoming to California, w Texas and s Texas. Despite numerous reports throughout U.S., Everglades area of s Florida, which contains perhaps 50 individuals, has only viable population east of Mississippi River.

Discussion The most widely distributed cat in the Americas (found from Canada to Argentina), the Mountain Lion is a solitary, strongly territorial hunting species. Unlike most cats, it hunts day or night, although it is generally active by day only in undisturbed areas, choosing to hunt at night in populated areas to avoid humans. A good climber and excellent jumper, able to leap more than 20 feet (6 m), this animal swims only when necessary. It feeds primarily on large mammals, especially deer, but also eats Coyotes, porcupines, beavers, mice, marmots, hares, raccoons, birds, and even grasshoppers. Sometimes it waits for passing game, but more often it travels widely after prey; a male may cover up to 25 miles (40 km) in one night. It can outrun a deer, but only for short distances. After locating large prey by scent or sound, it usually slinks forward slowly and silently, with belly low to the ground and legs tensed to leap. It tries to stalk within 30 feet (9 m) before running from its hiding place and leaping onto its victim’s back, keeping its hindlegs on the ground for support, control, and stability. The Mountain Lion kills its prey by biting into the back of the victim’s neck. Where deer abound, an adult Mountain Lion may kill an average of one per week. (This is often beneficial to the deer herd, helping to keep it from overpopulating.) There have been rare, unexplained killing orgies, when an individual has slaughtered several deer or a flock of domestic sheep in one night. This carnivore covers the meat it does not eat immediately with leaves, sticks, and like material for later use, and may visit the cache several times. Usually silent, the Mountain Lion can produce many kinds of calls, including screams, hisses, and growls. It also utters a shrill, piercing whistle, evidently an alarm, when it has been treed or cornered; a female uses this whistle to signal her cubs. The Mountain Lion’s bloodcurdling mating call has been likened to a woman’s scream. The male has a large home range that does not overlap with that of another male; the female has a smaller one that may overlap with those of other females and may be enclosed by that of a male. The home range of a male (and sometimes of a female) is marked by "scrapes," piles of dirt kicked up by the hindfeet. The Mountain Lion breeds at two and a half years, then generally every other year thereafter. The young are born in a maternity den that is lined with a small amount of moss or other vegetation and located in a rock shelter, crevice, pile of rocks, thicket, cave, or other protected place. The newborn cubs, heavily spotted for the first three months of life, are raised only by the female. At about three months, the young are weaned and begin hunting with the mother. Mother and young, who remain together for about a year and a half, com

PUMA is one of the famous trade-marks that gave Solingen its name " City of Knives " . Founded in 1769, the Company's first rule was, and still is today, first class quality which is reflected in their hunting and sporting knives. Since then, the skill and workmanship has been passed down from father to son, resulting in a combination of unsurpassed quality between the artisan and his art. Continuous contacts with other manufacturers, custom knife makers and designers, from all over the world led and lead to technical cooperation, exchange of experience and new models which complete the manufacturing program. A precondition for cooperation is that quality corresponds to our own high standard submitted to strict quality control. The PUMA guarantee stands for the utmost quality and the very best materials and craftsmanship.

We used several publications including some on-line sources in preparing this information for our equestrian readers, as well as information from the readers themselves. We often trail ride in mountain lion country, and we hope this article will be good for our reader and that this knowledge will make it easier to co-exist with the mountain lion. Some of the Images and Text on this website have been found while searching free collections of Text and graphics on the net. If you own the copyright to any of them please notify Webmaster and I will be happy to give credit and a link or remove them immediately.

During the past 100 years, approximately 70 Mountain Lion attack incidents have been recorded in The United states and Canada, resulting in 16 human fatalities. 75 percent of these attacks have occurred since 1970. A summary of varified mountain lion attacks on people since 1890 found that most victims were 16 years or younger and that the majority were not accompanied by adults. It was also found that the majority of the adults victims were alone and that most victims did not see the animal before the attack. Victim's efforts at fighting back by using a stick, rock, jacket, knife, bare hands, or shouting were often successful.

Mountain lions are solitary animals. Males and females pair only briefly to mate. Female lions may come into breeding conditions any time of the year, so kittens can be born year around. The usual litter size is 2 to 4 kittens. Females usually produce their first litter at 2 years of age and care for their young until the kittens are any where from 12 to 20 months old. Young mountain lions are quite large at 1 year of age and soon leave their mothers care to establish their own home ranges. The life of a predator is a tough one. The life span of a mountain lion in the wild is usually less then 10 years. In captivity, mountain lions have been known to live as long as 20 years. In North America deer are their primary meal although being opportunist, they prey on a wide variety of secondary, alternate prey, including large and small wild mammals, domestic livestock, and house pets. The wild mammals common in the lion's diet include mule deer, white-tailed deer, bighorn sheep, peccaries, wildpigs, coyotes, bobcats, foxes, raccoons, beavers, porcupines, opossums, hares and rabbits, skunks, marmots, ground sqirrels, and small rodents. The domestic or exotic animals killed and eaten by mountain lions include cattle, sheep, goats, pigs, horses, ostriches, emus, llamas, dogs(all breeds and sizes), and house cats.

Is it as simple as staying out of mountain lion country? Of course not. If you did, there would be few places left to explore. Be aware of the wild life around you, respect them, be prepared, and enjoy. Follow these safety tips:

THE COUGAR

The cougar is also known as the mountain lion, puma and panther. It is one of only three wild cats native to Canada. The other two are the bobcat and the Canada lynx. The cougar is larger than the other two and has a much longer tail.

RANGE (map)- western Canada (sw Alberta, interior BC, BC coast,on Vancouver Island
- endangered in eastern Canada, a few sightings in other provinces.(CWF)
- western US (and Florida), Mexico, Central & South America HABITAT (HOME) - mountains, forests, grasslands, swamps, semi-deserts
- finds shelter in caves, rocks, bushes and thick undergrowth

 

HUNTING FOR FOOD - prefers to hunt in evening and at dawn
- will roam and hunt at any time
- carnivore (meat eater)
- hunts mule deer, white-tailed deer, elk, moose calves
- also eats birds and smaller mammals
(porcupine, beaver, coyote, hare, rabbit, raccoon, ground squirrel)
- known to kill farm animals (poultry, sheep, goats, calves, pigs, horses)
- hunts over a wide area (called territory)
- stalks prey, then leaps and knocks animal to the ground
- bites the animal's throat or neck
- covers up large kills and returns later to finish eating
- runs fast over short distances, but tires quickly HABITS (BEHAVIOR) - in rare cases, has been known to attack people
- tries to avoid people
- has many sounds, including purrs, screams, hisses, and growls
- alarm or signal is a shrill whistle
- listen to a cougar (26KB wav) ADAPTATIONS- good climber, makes huge leaps
- good swimmer, but swims only when necessary
- excellent sight and hearing
- long, sharp teeth for holding on to prey and cutting meat
- sharp claws for hunting (catching prey), fighting and climbing YOUNG- female usually gives birth every second year (late winter to early summer)
- young are called kittens or cubs
- litters average 2 to 4 (may have as many as six)
- born in a cave, den in rocks, hollow log, under an overturned tree, in thick brush.
- weigh about 200 to 450 grams at birth (7 ounces to 1 pound)
- light brown coat with dark brown spots and a ringed tail
- eyes are closed at birth, open in ten days
- blue eyes when born, change to yellow
- begin walking in two weeks
- live on mother's milk for up to three months
- can eat some meat at six weeks of age
- first mother brings them food, then teaches them to hunt
- stay with mother for the first winter, sometimes for two years ENEMIES- man hunts cougars with guns, poison, snares, traps, hunting dogs
- farmers and ranchers shoot the cougar to protect livestock

photo courtesy of Don Getty, CalPhotos
larger image
INTERESTING FACTS- some native peoples in North and South America revere (honour) the cougar
- lifespan in the wild is up to 18 years
- endangered in eastern Canada and eastern US, only a few left in Florida
- hunting is regulated in Canada, western US and Mexico
- numbers in Canada 4,000 ; B.C. 3500 (most are on Vanc  [ send green star]

In Canada, cougar, mountain lion, puma, and panther are all the same species, which is known to scientists as Felis concolor. This animal is one of only three wild felids (the general name for any member of the cat family) native to Canada; it is larger than the other two, the bobcat and the lynx, and has a much longer tail.

This animal has many names, in many languages. The Malecites of New Brunswick called it "pi-twal," meaning "the long tailed one." English settlers along the Atlantic coast called it "panther" after the Old World panther, which they had seen in animal shows, zoos, and works of art. The French explorers of southern Quebec and New Brunswick called it the "carcajou," a name later given to the wolverine farther west, which caused confusion in the literature about the two animals. The English name "cougar" and French "couguar," now widely used in Canada, were adapted from the Brazilian native name "cuguacuarana." The name "mountain lion" is widely accepted, especially in the western United States. "Puma" is the native Peruvian name.

The cougar's range has decreased since European settlement, but is still the most extensive of any terrestrial mammal in the western hemisphere. It extends north to the Yukon border at 60� N and south to Patagonia.

In Canada, where the cougar's range once mirrored that of its chief food, the deer � extending from the west coast south of 60� N, across the prairies, through the forests of southern Ontario to the lower Ottawa valley, into the St. Lawrence valley of Quebec, and into New Brunswick � this large predator is now common only in the west.

There are four Canadian subspecies of the cougar. The subspecies native to eastern Canada F.c. cougar (Kerr) is listed as endangered by both the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) in Canada and the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna (CITE internationally. Some authorities think it is extinct. (The eastern cougar found in southern Florida is a different subspecies.) The other three Canadian subspecies of the cougar occur in western Canada. F.c. missoulensis (Goldman) ranges through southwestern Alberta and in the interior of British Columbia, F.c. oregonensis (Rafinesque) is found along the Coast Range of British Columbia, and F.c. vancouverensis (Nelson and Goldman) is indigenous only on Vancouver Island.

Although well established populations exist only in the forested parts of British Columbia and western Alberta, cougars have been occasionally reported in the last 10 years in every province except Prince Edward Island. At least some of the sightings from the eastern provinces (the range of the endangered Kerr subspecies) have proven to be encounters with western cougars that had escaped from captivity: other sightings are still disputed. The last eastern cougar to be killed in Canada was shot near the Quebec-Maine border in 1938, and its remains are at the University of New Brunswick. Although there has been no undisputed evidence since then of the existence of the Kerr subspecies, nonetheless, cougars are so reclusive that scientific opinion remains divided on whether the Kerr subspecies is extinct.

The cougar is the second largest cat in the New World. (The jaguar is the largest.) Like all cats, it has a lithe, muscular, compact, and deep-chested body, with a rounded and shortened head. Its whiskers are well developed and its eyes are large. One of the cougar's distinctive characteristics is its long tail, which is useful for balance.

Cougars vary considerably in size and weight throughout their range. Among all races, adult males typically weigh 1.4 times more than females. In southwestern Alberta, mean weights for adult males and females are 71kg and 4lkg, respectively. Total body lengths of adult male cougars in North America are slightly more than 2m and of adult females, slightly less than 2m.

The North American cougar's normal colour is reddish tawny or tawny grey to dark chocolate brown. The backs of the ears and the tip of the tail are black, and there are black markings on the face. The kittens are spotted at birth, but the spots disappear before the end of their first year.

The cougar is well equipped for grasping and cutting up large prey. Its forequarters and neck are exceptionally strong. Its muscular jaws, wide gape, and long canine teeth are designed for clamping down on and holding onto prey larger than itself. The cougar has, in addition, teeth that are specially adapted for cutting meat, tendons, and sinews.

Like all members of the cat family, cougars have five digits on the forepaw and four on the hindpaw. Each digit is equipped with a claw, which the cougar sheathes while walking, but which it uses with deadly effectiveness when grasping its prey. The front feet and claws are larger than their counterparts in the rear, again adaptations for clutching large prey.

Cougar populations are made up of resident adults, dependent cubs, and transients. Transients most often are independent young cougars who have not yet settled on their own territory, or "home range," or begun to breed. In western North America, population density of cougars ranges from 0.3 to 9.2 per 100km� and is limited by abundance of prey, the availability of suitable hunting sites, and the cougar's social structure. Because cougars reside at the top of the food chain, healthy cougar populations are good indicators of healthy and balanced ecosystems.

Male cougars usually have large home ranges that do not overlap the territories of other males but overlap the ranges of several females. The home ranges of female cougars may overlap a great deal among themselves. Among females, those with large litters and older kittens typically have the largest home ranges, because a large cougar family needs more food. In areas where prey are migratory, cougars may have more than one home range.

Even where their home ranges overlap, cougars avoid each other. Adults of both sexes travel alone, except when mating or when adult females are accompanied by their kittens.

Cougars are polygamous. A male with a large home range is able to breed a large number of females, and this increases his reproductive success. A resident male usually attempts to maintain exclusive breeding rights with females within his area.

The male visits all the females he can find, continually searching for those in heat that will accept him, and marks out his territory with scent posts called scrapes. He may travel many kilometres in these searches; one male covered 50km in a day and a night. Fighting may occur initially, but once individuals are settled on a territory little strife occurs. This peaceful social system helps to maintain stable cougar populations.

Normally a silent hunter, the cougar, like any cat, becomes vocal when ready to breed. Female cougars in heat have been seen and heard yowling. Cougars do not breed in any special season, and the young may be born at any time of the year.

The females mate for the first time when they are two to three years old, and the gestation period is about 90 days. The female selects a sheltered spot, such as a cave or windfall, for her litter. From one to six cubs may be born, although rarely are more than three full-grown cubs found with the mother. The cubs are born with closed eyes that are fully open by the end of the second week. They are usually weaned at four to five weeks. Care of the cubs rests solely with the female, who brings them food and teaches them to hunt. She prevents the male from even approaching the small cubs, by combat if necessary, as the adult male has been known to eat them. The cubs stay with the female until they are about one and a half years old, by which time the male kittens are larger than their mother. In spite of her instructions in the rudiments of survival, the cubs have a difficult time when they are first on their own. Resident females usually produce litters every 18-24 months. In the southwestern foothills of Alberta, the rate at which kittens reached independence was close to two kittens per female per year over a seven-year period.

In jurisdictions where cougar hunting with hounds is allowed, hunting is the most common cause of death. (Cougars are normally elusive, but can be treed by hounds.) Natural mortality occurs in many ways. Because cougars frequently kill prey larger than themselves, they are continually exposed to the risk of serious injuries which eventually take their toll. Cougars have sustained broken backs, massive chest injuries, and perforated abdomens while trying to kill prey. When a female with a litter dies, the cubs usually die also, unless they are over 9-12 months old and can feed and defend themselves. The independent young subadult cougars are more prone to starvation than their elders. Male cougars occasionally kill kittens, young subadults, and other adult males in territorial disputes.

Cougars occupy a wide range of vegetation types. In North America, they use habitat suitable for white-tailed deer and mule deer. In western Canada, cougars are found in forested parts of the foothills, mountains, and interior plateaus. Cover, in the form of vegetation and broken topography, is more important to cougars than any particular vegetation type.

Cougars hunt mule deer, white-tailed deer, elk, and moose calves, where they are available, although as opportunistic predators they eat many other species of mammals and birds. In some areas, cougars prey on bighorn sheep. Where different prey species are available the diets of male and female cougars may be significantly different. In winter in the Sheep River area of southwestern Alberta, moose calves made up about 85% of the winter prey of male cougars, whereas deer and elk represented 79% of the diet of female cougars. When cougars hunt smaller mammals, they take porcupine, beaver, coyote, snowshoe hare, and ground squirrels most frequently. Cougars typically kill their own food; scavenging is rare.

Like all cats, cougars hunt more by sight and hearing than by scent. They stalk their prey to within two or three great leaps and then launch a lightning-fast charge that ends with the cougar striking the prey with the full impact of the charge and bearing it to the ground.

Cougars kill most often by suffocating with a prolonged bite across the throat, collapsing the victim's trachea, or by breaking the victim's neck with a single bite. Large prey, such as moose calves and elk, are usually suffocated. Small prey, like mule deer fawns are more likely to die from broken necks. After a kill, a cougar will cover its victim with debris between feedings to reduce the likelihood of scavengers finding the carcass.

Also known as cougar, jaguar, and puma, the mountain lion stalks a wide range of habitats from Canada to South America. Its coloration is as variable as its habitat, though tawny and grayish brown are most common. Large adults may weigh as much as 220 pounds. A solitary creature, each mountain lion lives in a defined territory. Males sometimes allow females to overlap territories with theirs, but not another male. 

Usually hunting in the early morning and evening, the mountain lion’s main prey is deer, though it hunts rodents, hares, and sometimes domestic livestock as well. It is a stealthy hunter, stalking its prey, then leaping as far as 20 ft to kill the animal with a powerful bite to the nape of the neck. Males are somewhat less spectacularly violent when defending a mate from rivals. Usually mating for a season, sometimes longer, females bear 2-4 young in a den among rocks or dense vegetation after a gestation of 92-96 days, often using the same den several years in a row. In the mountain lion’s northern range, young are born in summer, year round in the tropics. They begin eating solid food around 6-7 weeks and stay with the mother for 1-2 years. 

Once common, the mountain lion is extirpated in much of its American range, especially in the eastern United States, where only 30-50 Florida Panthers remain. The IUCN lists the mountain lion as Near Threatened, the Florida subspecies as Critically Endangered. The main threats to the species have been loss of prey and habitat and intentional persecution. It is estimated that less than 50,000 mature breeding mountain lions remain globally.

To assist in the conservation of rare felids and rare canids by supporting and providing financial resources for the conservation programs of nations within the range of rare felid and rare canid populations and projects of persons with demonstrated expertise in the conservation of rare felid and rare canid populations.

March 29, 2007

Mr. LIEBERMAN (for himself and Mr. BROWNBACK) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works

To assist in the conservation of rare felids and rare canids by supporting and providing financial resources for the conservation programs of nations within the range of rare felid and rare canid populations and projects of persons with demonstrated expertise in the conservation of rare felid and rare canid populations.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the `Great Cats and Rare Canids Act of 2007'.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

Congress finds the following:

(1) Many wild populations of felids and canids, once considered common, are in decline, and many have declined to the point that their long-term survival in the wild is in serious jeopardy.

(2) Of the 37 wild felid species worldwide, all are currently recognized as species in need of protection under the IUCN Red List, the lists of species in CITES appendices I, II, and III, or the Endangered Species Act of 1973. Of the 35 wild canid species worldwide, nearly 50 percent are recognized as in need of such protection.

(3) In addition to their intrinsic value, felids and canids are important aesthetic, economic, and ecological global resources that need to be conserved.

(4) Large felids and canids are considered both umbrella and indicator species. Healthy populations of these species act as an important indicator of the integrity of entire ecosystems and, because they require large wild spaces to persist, benefit entire ecosystems and a large number of other species. Measures taken to benefit these keystone species will ultimately benefit a great number of other species.

(5) Rare felids and rare canids face an array of threats, including loss of habitat and natural prey, intentional and unintentional takings by humans, disease transmission, and a vast number of other threats. These threats need to be addressed in a coordinated fashion.

(6) Conservation of rare felid and rare canid populations requires global commitment. Adequate funding for conservation is sorely lacking, and many range countries for those species do not have adequate infrastructure to protect species of concern. Those countries that do provide assistance to threatened populations need further assistance in implementing effective conservation strategies.

(7) In particular, in developing nations with limited resources, poverty, population growth, and habitat loss all present significant challenges to conservation of rare felids and rare canids.

(8) Although some protections and initiatives exist to conserve rare felid and rare canid populations and their habitat, those efforts can be significantly strengthened and enhanced by increased coordination and the infusion of targeted funding to benefit species of concern.

SEC. 3. PURPOSES.

The purposes of this Act are to provide financial resources and to foster international cooperation--

(1) to restore and perpetuate healthy populations of rare felids and rare canids in the wild; and

(2) to assist in the conservation of rare felid and rare canid populations worldwide.

SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.

In this Act:

(1) CITES- The term `CITES' means the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, done at Washington March 3, 1973 (27 UST 1087; TIAS 8249), including its appendices.

(2) CONSERVATION- The term `conservation'--

(A) means the methods and procedures necessary to bring a species of rare felid or rare canid to the point at which there are sufficient populations in the wild to ensure the long-term viability of the species;

( includes all activities associated with protection and management of a rare felid or rare canid population, including--

(i) maintenance, management, protection, and restoration of rare felid or rare canid habitat;

(ii) research and monitoring;

(iii) law enforcement;

(iv) community outreach and education;

(v) conflict resolution initiatives; and

(vi) strengthening the capacity of local communities, governmental agencies, nongovernmental organizations and other institutions to implement conservation programs.

(3) FUND- The term `Fund' means the Great Cats and Rare Canids Conservation Fund established by section 6.

(4) IUCN RED LIST- The term `IUCN Red List' means the Red List of Threatened Species Maintained by the World Conservation Union.

(5) RARE CANID- The term `rare canid'--

(A) means any canid species, subspecies, or population that--

(i) is not native to the area comprised of the United States and Canada; and

(ii) is included  [report anonymous abuse]

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My contribution

PUMA / PANTHER

The puma is also known as jaguar, panther, cougar, mountain lion, cheetah, leopard and more names than just about any other mammal.   Male pumas are solitary cats and their domain vary in size between 30 to 125 miles, but ranges do overlap the ranges of the smaller female.  Pumas 'communicate' with each other by leaving feces, urine, scratches on logs or in the dirt or snow.  Only females make a den and males tend to roam.  Pumas are powerfully built and have sharp paws and large paws. Even though they can run very fast and have a flexible spine to help them maneuver around obstacles and change direction quickly, pumas are mostly ambush hunters.  Pumas have been known to down large elks and moose.  American Indians successfully lived beside the puma and appreciated their power and grace.

PUMA MEDICINE

• Though the puma is smaller, some species are more fierce than lions and tigers.  They are expert climbers and swimmers. Their speed hold the teachings of quick decisive action.

• Pumas are graceful and fast runners, but not for long distances. If puma arrives at your doorstep it may be a reminder to measure or pace your movements according to the goal to be achieved and not run too hard. 

• The puma have over 410 voluntary muscles that can be used when the needed.  This characteristic symbolizes the ability to move into different realities. 

• Pumas have built-in sensors that enhances its ability to see and feel its prey.  The whiskers and hair on its face can detect faint vibrations at long distances and its sense of smell is phenomenal.  If you sense puma in your dreams it may mean there is a need to be more sensitive the people and situations around you.  Becoming more perceptive of ones surroundings is sometimes needed to achieve a heightened sense of spiritual awareness.    

• The Puma spirit represents power, grace and stealth in darkness, but its real power lies in the silence of its eerie, unblinking stare that seems to bore deep into one's soul.  This teaching can help us to discover the benefits of concentration, deep contemplation and prayer.  As we peer into the darkness of the unknown to feel its power, we can be guided by our puma friend to the light on the other side.

• The puma is extremely quiet during the hunt.  It knows when to be invisible and when to make its awesome presence known.  Silence is its sword and power.  Silence is highly respected among American Indians and is seen as a holy state of consciousness as we quietly behold the grace and glory of the Creator.  It is said that silence speaks words of the Great Mystery.  When the student is ready, the puma teacher may bring knowledge of this powerful medicine. 

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By Tanya Dewey

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Chordata

Subphylum: Vertebrata

Class: Mammalia

Order: Carnivora

Suborder: Feliformia

Family: Felidae

Subfamily: Felinae

Genus: Puma

Species: Puma concolor

Members of this Species

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