Hailed as an iconic conservation success story, the Florida panther has a complex, little-known history
One of the most important prehistoric Native American artworks depicts a Florida panther. Known as the Key Marco cat, this six-inch-high figurine has a cat’s head and the body of a kneeling human.
This piece of art reminds us that the Florida panther’s story, and its relationship to humans, are complex and mysterious. Here is some of that tale.Before Europeans arrived, mountain lions were found throughout most of North America. Over time, the animals were hunted and trapped widely; they eventually were almost eliminated from the eastern half of the United States.
The hunting soon took its toll, even in the feline’s last eastern stronghold. By the 1930s, it seemed the animals had gone extinct, although a few sightings and killings were soon reported near Big Cypress swamp. Finally, in 1958, the state passed a law making it illegal to hunt the animals, and they were protected under the federal Endangered Species Act in 1973.
One Cherokee story also casts the panther in a heroic light, as relayed by the scholar Ryan Wheeler: “When the Earth was first made the animals and plants were advised to stay awake for seven days; among the animals, only the owl and the panther and a few others were able to stay awake—and to these were given the ability to see at night and [hunt].”
But there are exceptions. In December 1983, James Billie, the long-time chief of the Seminoles, shot a panther on the Big Cypress Reservation in southern Florida and ate some of it. “It tasted like deer,” he said in an interview I did with him at his home, defending his actions as culturally appropriate. Though the federal government attempted to press charges, eventually the case was dropped.
Today, somewhere around 200 panthers remain, an incredible story of ecological recovery—but one that is by no means assured. To survive, panthers need to expand to the north because there’s not enough room for them in South Florida. To do that, more green spaces must be protected and more done to prevent vehicle strikes and habitat loss.
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