Dead Florida Panther Reported by Miccosukee in Broward County

Contacts:
Tom MacKenzie, Chief of Media Relations, (404)679-7291

Miccosukee tribal wildlife officers notified the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on Thursday January 25, 2007, of a dead Florida panther discovered in Broward County, FL. The Service has recovered the remains of a collared dead Florida panther.

The panther has been taken to a cold storage facility pending necropsy to determine its cause of death.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the principal Federal agency responsible for conserving, protecting and enhancing fish, wildlife and plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. The Service manages the 95-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System, which encompasses 545 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands and other special management areas. It also operates 69 national fish hatcheries, 64 fishery resources offices and 81 ecological services field stations. The agency enforces federal wildlife laws, administers the Endangered Species Act, manages migratory bird populations, restores nationally significant fisheries, conserves and restores wildlife habitat such as wetlands, and helps foreign and Native American tribal governments with their conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Assistance program, which distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to state fish and wildlife agencies.