Landscape-scale Conservation Planning for the Florida Panther
Randy Kautz, and Robert Kawula
Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, Tallahassee, FL
Thomas Hoctor
University of Florida, Gainesville, FL
Jane Comiskey
University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN
Deborah Jansen
Big Cypress National Preserve, Ochopee, FL
Dawn Jennings, and John Kasbohm
U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Jacksonville, FL
Frank Mazzotti
Fort Lauderdale Research and Education Center, Davie, FL
Roy McBride
Livestock Protection Company, Ochopee, FL
Larry Richardson
U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Naples, FL
Karen Root
Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH
The Florida panther (Puma concolor coryi) is an endangered, wide-ranging
predator currently limited to south Florida. For over a decade, the panther has
been a subject of controversy as its habitat needs have conflicted with a rapidly
growing human population. The goal of this project was to identify habitat areas
needed for a self-sustaining panther population before key habitats are developed
for human uses. Analyses of Florida panther radio-telemetry data with respect to
land cover reveal that panthers prefer forests as daytime resting sites, but other
natural and disturbed cover types also are present in the landscape where panthers
are found. An updated model of habitats likely to be selected by Florida panthers
was created using the following criteria: forest patches >2 ha; non-urban cover
types <200 m from forest patches; and exclusion of lands <300 m from urban
areas. The potential habitat map, telemetry data, satellite imagery, and home
range polygons were used to delineate the boundaries of a Primary Zone, lands
most important to a self-sustaining panther population. Least-cost path models
were constructed to identify landscape linkages most likely to be used by panthers
dispersing out of south Florida. Model results were used to delineate the
boundaries of a Dispersal Zone, an area needing protection from development to
accommodate future panther dispersal. The contextual quality of the landscape
surrounding the Primary Zone was modeled, and the results were used to identify
a Secondary Zone, an area where existing habitat coupled with restoration could
significantly enhance the viability of the panther population. Estimates of
population density indicate that the three zones (Figure 1) could support 79-94
panthers. Population viability models suggest that a population of this size would
have a low probability of extinction over the next 100 years, but it may remain
stable or decline gradually, and would be subject to genetic problems without
management intervention.
Florida Panther
Habitat
Conservation Zones
Figure 1. South Florida landscapes identified for conservation of Florida
panther habitat by the Florida panther sub-team of MERIT.
Kautz, Randy S., Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, 620 South
Meridian Street, Tallahassee, FL 32399-1600, Phone (850) 488-6661, Fax (850)
922-5679, randy.kautz@fwc.state.fl.us.