PUNTA GORDA, Fla. – Great news to report about the endangered Florida Panther.
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Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission officers just caught the largest panther ever weighed in the sunshine state.
The big cat was spotted perched in a tree at the Tarpon Blue Ag Babcock Ranch in Punta Gorda last week.
After officers were able to safely remove the Panther from the tree, they say it weighed 165 pounds.
That’s a new state record.
According to the FWC, adult panthers weigh between 60 and 160 pounds and are between 5 to 7 feet long.
Panthers are listed as an Endangered Species under the Endangered Species Act, and there are between 120-230 adult panthers in the population.
Most live in southwest Florida in the Big Cypress Nat’l Preserve north to Lake Okeechobee.
Panthers and bobcats are the only two wild cats found in Florida, and panthers are the larger of the two.