PALM BEACH ZOO TO EXHIBIT TWO PANTHERS
Opening on Friday, Aug. 10th
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla., August 7, 2012 – Two panthers have arrived at the Palm Beach Zoo and will be on public exhibit starting on Friday, August 10th. Keith Lovett, Assistant Zoo Director, said, “The
arrival of these cats is an exciting moment for the Zoo. Our mission is to inspire people to value and conserve the natural world, and nothing does that better than offering them an opportunity to see rare and charismatic animals that are native to our own region. The Florida panther is considered endangered by the US Fish and Wildlife Service and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. For over 17 years we exhibited a Florida panther named Colin Patrick who passed away in March of this year. He was greatly loved by Zoo visitors, and now these kittens, although not born in Florida, will carry on his legacy as ambassadors to raise awareness about the plight of the Florida panther.”
The arrival of the panther kittens will be celebrated on Friday evening at a special Safari Night event hosted by Waste Management from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. ”Waste Management is pleased to support the Palm Beach Zoo Safari Nights and welcome the new panther cubs to the Zoo family,” said Dawn McCormick, Community Affairs Manager. “As its waste and recycling provider, Waste Management shares the zoo’s commitment to conservation and sustainability practices, and values its longtime partnership with the Palm Beach Zoo.”
The Florida Panthers Hockey Club Street team will be on hand on Friday evening along with a bounce house and games for the enjoyment of the children.
The panther (Puma concolor) kittens came to the Zoo through the coordination of the AZA Puma SSP (run by the Oregon Zoo) whose critical function is to help rescue and rehabilitate orphaned panthers and place them in approved facilities such as AZA zoos. One of the two cubs now at the Palm Beach Zoo was rescued in Washington State and came to the Zoo on April 19, 2012 via the Oregon Zoo. The second kitten was rescued in Idaho and came to the Zoo on June 28, 2012 via the Oregon Zoo as well. The panthers were orphaned when each of their mothers was euthanized as a result of coming too close to human dwellings. The cubs were not discovered until after their mothers were euthanized and each had littermates that were not successfully rescued.
Both kittens are approximately seven months old, however, the kitten from Idaho is slightly larger (60lbs versus 50lbs) and darker than the kitten from Washington State, making them easy to tell apart. Palm Beach Zoo staff members have been working diligently to acclimate the kittens to their new surroundings and to build trusting relationships with them through husbandry training techniques.
Puma concolor includes panthers found throughout their entire range from the western United States down through South America. They actually have the largest distribution of any land mammal in the Western hemisphere. They are also referred to as pumas, cougars, catamounts, and mountain lions, depending on location. Florida panthers are those exclusively found in the state of Florida, however, there appear to be no genetic differences in panthers found in North America.
Panthers are found in a wide variety of habitats and will feed on small to medium bodied mammals including deer and even reptiles such as small alligators in Florida. They can measure up to seven feet in length (including a tail that can make up one third of that length) and adults will typically weigh between 75 and 150 pounds, with males tending to be larger. They have a brown coat with slightly lighter under-parts (concolor means of uniform color throughout) and kittens will also have a covering of darker spots to help provide better them camouflage. They can leap up to 20 feet in a single bound. Panthers do not roar, rather, they purr, hiss, growl, yowl, and scream. They are solitary except when adults come together to breed or when a mother is raising young. Panthers can give birth year-round and will give birth to one to six kittens after a 90-96 day gestation period. On average, panthers will live 10 years in the wild and can reach up to 20 years of age in captivity.
Their conservation status depends on their location. Panthers are listed as a Species of Least Concern by the IUCN due to their wide distribution, but the Florida panther is considered endangered by the USFWS and the FWC. This population only occupies 5% of its historic range and experts believe they number less than 150. Overhunting initially decimated numbers resulting in a small and genetically unhealthy population. Texas cougars were introduced into the Florida population in the mid 1990’s to help get them back on track. Conservationists have been working to protect Florida panthers and through these efforts, their number has risen.
The Palm Beach Zoo will not have a breeding program for panthers due to the regular need to find homes for orphaned kittens such as these new arrivals.
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About the Palm Beach Zoo
The Palm Beach Zoo is located at 1301 Summit Boulevard, just east of I-95 between Southern and Forest Hill Boulevard. There is ample free parking. The Zoo is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. every day except Christmas and Thanksgiving Day. Open Fridays from 5:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. June through October. For more information regarding the Palm Beach Zoo please visit www.palmbeachzoo.org. The Zoological Society of the Palm Beaches exists to protect wildlife and wildlife habitat, and to inspire others to value and conserve the natural world. We advance our conservation mission through endangered species propagation, education, health and wellness, field research, and conservation medicine.