FORT MYERS, Fla. (AP) — Officials say two Florida panthers have been found dead in separate incidents in southwest Florida.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission reports that a 10-year-old male's body was found dead Friday from an unknown cause on private property in Hendry County, and a 4-year-old female was found dead the same day in Collier County from an apparent vehicle strike. The remains will be taken to a Gainesville facility for a necropsy.
A total of 29 Florida panthers have been found dead in 2016, with 22 road fatalities.
Florida panthers once roamed the entire southeastern U.S., but only around 180 remain in the wild.