Florida Panther in my neighborhood (Orlando, Port St. Lucie: 2015, homes, live in)

[SeetheUSA]

We went up to Orlando last weekend and saw a Bobcat run across 90 going towards Yeehaw Junction. Love Florida wildlife!! Glad you get a front row ticket to watching nature continue on here!

[allie_conti]

Hey there,

My name is Allie Conti, and I'm a reporter down in Miami working on a story that you could help with. Please get in contact with me. allie.conti@browardpalmbeach.com or 305 571 7613. Thanks.

[bigsam343]

Which neighbourhood is this exactly, I live close to 95 and I want to know if my child is in danger if he's playing in the yard. We live just off Galiano

[pslhomie]

Yeah more than likely they were bobcats. Panthers are about the size of a very large dog while bobcats are about 2 feet tall. PSL is over run with them. I see them in my neighborhood all the time.

[sware2cod]

I saw a very large bobcat and the first thing I thought was "panther". It was very tall and very large for a bobcat. But I was able to get close enough to it (from a slow moving car) take a very good look at it to confirm that it was a bobcat and not a panther. It was as nearly as tall as the panther in the photos above. Bobcats can vary in size quite a bit. I have seen small and medium sized bobcats too. But that large one was huge. But still not a panther.

[dogdiamond]

A panther's relatively long thick tail may be the key to solid identification between it and a bobcat. Hopefully this thread will get everyone looking close in order to verify the presence of panthers in the area. Keep those i-phones at the ready.

[pslhomie]

There is a huge difference between a panther (mountain lion) and a bob cat. The biggest give away is the face and long hair on the bob cat. The panther is at least twice his size.

[dogdiamond]

Viewing animals at different angles and lighting conditions can cause identification difficulties. I was in a place called Okaloakoochee Slough once (near Imokalee Fl) and took a break from bicycle riding on a sand road. Eventually I looked down this road and saw what I thought was a deer standing on the angled road shoulder about 80 to 100 yards away. Something didn't look quite right (the head) so I checked with binoculars and was shocked to see it was a bobcat - I'm talking about 70+ pounds worth guaranteed with the pointed ears, spots and the bobbed tail.

So, in conclusion some bobcats are as large as non-mature panthers - difficult to believe but none the less true.

[pslhomie]

Bobcats look nothing like a panther. Bobcat looks like a house cat on steroids with a growth hormone problem. Panthers look like the Pink Panther only brown. Bobcats have very short tales while panthers have long tails.

[dogdiamond]

Originally Posted by toneyp1

My wife and visiting relative saw a panther and babies cross the street not far from my house. There are bushes behind my house and the one next to me and 4 more over grown plots to the end of the street.Anything can be living in there. There are also 5 more street behind mine and then i-95. The neighborhood kids play in the bushes behind my house. They come from all around this area. There are 3 tree houses and a obstical course(as they call it..lol ) visible from my yard. I called the police and they transferred me to some Florida wildlife something or the other. They asked us a bunch of questions and said someone will call us back. I wish my son had gotten the darn number but he hung up before i got followup info. Anyway that was 3 weeks ago and no one has called or contacted us. What should I do? My wife is real scared. I have 2 cats who are use to being let out every single morning. They whine, fuss and meow us to death now when I dont let them out.

The FWC commissioners themselves can be emailed at commissioners@myfwc.com if one would care to go direct. They will all be in an FWC meeting tomorrow and Thursday in Ft Myers.

Tomorrow (Wednesday) One agenda item #12 C will be discussing panthers as per a Panther Update Presentation that will be given before the FWC commissioners discuss it. In the presentation document at pgs 21, 30 & 41 references are made as to restoration goals for this animal being UN-realistic considering the impacts that the US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS is a Federal agency) the population goals would have on people such as y'all in many areas of Florida.

Might want to consider mentioning your concerns as expressed here since I am quite sure they might actually discuss them publicly under this agenda item tonight or in the early morning hours so the commissioners might see them before the discussion.

Some if not all commissioners are sensitive to these type of concerns that citizens have.