At the end of the day, the 100 remaining Cougars in Florida need more room to roam............That is the solution that must be implemented for the existing population to successfully co-exist with area Ranchers...........Florida's Fish & Wildlife Commision and the Defenders of Wildlife will continue to study all variables surrounding this coexistance issue over the next two years..........But as we all know, all creatures including man will take the easiest food available when hunger sets in...........With our Cougars bottlenecked in South Florida, adolescent cats seeking to disperse into new territories of their own may very well be targeting cattle(as they are often unprotected) as they pass through private ranchlands until running smack into a man made obstacle( highways, industry, etc).........Boxed in and without a territory of their own in which to hunt native prey(deer), the sedentary cow ends up becoming Cougar kill

Looking for Ways Panthers and Ranchers Can Coexist in FL

GAINESVILLE, Fla. - A new study in Florida is aimed at helping determine the best ways for cattle and panthers to coexist.

The endangered Florida panther has made an amazing comeback. Once only 20 remained, but now the population is estimated at 100 to 160. However, finding a place for all those panthers to live without conflict is getting more difficult.

Last year, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission began receiving reports of the cats preying on calves, beyond their natural prey of deer, wild hogs and other native game. The University of Florida and Defenders of Wildlife are studying the situation in an effort to find solutions.

Caitlin Jacobs, a graduate student and researcher at the university, says radio tags on calves and motion-detecting cameras are being employed to help get answers.

"We have them placed around the study areas to try and capture pictures of panthers - for one, to show how much panther activity there is on these ranches."

The two-year study is focusing on two ranches in southwest Florida where the goal is to determine the extent to which predators, in particular the Florida panther, are responsible for calf mortality.

The research, Jacobs says, should answer a number of questions about how the calves are dying and about how many panthers may have developed a taste for calves.

"Is there one cat that has learned that calves are easy prey?"

Liesa Priddy, owner of J-B Ranch in Immokalee and one of the ranchers participating in the study, says having good information is key to coming up with a plan to balance the panthers' habitat needs with ranchers' concerns.

"Only with that solid information, having everybody on board in agreement with what the problem is, are you going to be able to address it and come up with a solution."

So far, 24 panthers have died in 2011, which is tied as the most deadly year with 2003 and 2009.

Glen Gardner, Public News Service - FL