Florida Panthers or Felis concolor coryi live in the swampier parts of the Everglades. They also live around trees, as they have the ability to climb them and they can sleep and hunt in the trees. Florida Panther's are endangered with there being only a few hundred of them left in the wild. Their average lifespan is 12 years in the wild but they are very susceptible to diseases which significantly reduces their lifespan. Florida panthers live alone, unless a pair is mating or a female is raising cubs. Males roam much larger territories than the females. A male can make a territory over 200-250 square miles in size. |
NutritionThese panthers are secondary and tertiary consumers and are heterotrophs.
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Carrying Capacity
One of the largest density independent limiting factors for panthers is cars and road vehicles, since they cross roads frequently. The second limiting factor for the panthers is land availability. The Florida Panthers now only have 20% of land, while humans have 80%. This seriously impacts their feeding rates, since less prey is available to them. Because the Burmese Python was introduced into the ecosystem, the Panther's carrying capacity has been affected as it has less prey and lower food availability. “One particular concern is the spread of pythons to biologically vulnerable areas such as the Florida Keys. Because Burmese pythons are excellent swimmers and can travel long distances in water." This threatens the prey of the panthers, since pythons eat their prey. The Burmese Python shares very similar prey to the Panther, however there are a lot more pythons and the Panthers are being outcompeted and this is leading to a lower carrying capacity. This is also known as interspecific competition. The Florida Panthers are already endangered, so The Burmese Python is having catastrophic effects, possibly outcompeting them to extinction. Without these majestic beasts, deer would eat all of the saw grass in the Everglades. This would kill hundreds of other species. Not only that, but Florida Panthers actually increase prey health. By killing weak organisms, the panthers ensure that only strong and healthy organisms breed and have offspring. This results in healthier populations, and a stronger ecosystem. It also eliminates many genetic defects from spreading through generations.