Posted on 08/28/2007 2:33:06 PM PDT by BGHater
For years there have been stories of Black Florida Panthers prowling in our wilderness, but there's never been any official record they exist.
Now that mystery may be over.
A cat has been captured and researchers at the Busch Wildlife Sanctuary say they now know what people were referring to when they said they saw the panther.
We're all familiar with the Florida Panther, golden in color and about 130 pounds.
You may have also heard of a "Black Panther," which has been like our local Lochness Monster; people have said they've seen it, but it's never been caught.
One woman recently called the Busch Wildlife Sanctuary because she said she had one right in her back yard.
"She said she had this gigantic Black Panther in her back yard and that it had killed a pet turkey that she'd had. She was hysterical," says David Hitzig with the Busch Wildlife Sanctuary.
"She describes to me this big black cat the size of a Labrador dog," says Deron Hartman, also with the Busch Wildlife Sanctuary.
Hartman responded to the woman's call for help and the turkey snatcher turned out to be no Black Panther instead, a Black Bobcat.
"It's a very unique animal. It's very rare. It's definitely the highlight of my trapping," says Hartman.
It weighs only about 20 pounds and it's color is black from head to tail with one white spot on the belly.
Hartman says less than a dozen have been recorded. Most of them in South Florida near the Loxahatchee River and St. Lucie Canal. The first was discovered about 70 years ago.
But it's more than just a rare find, it can also help bring answers to an old Florida tale.
"For years, people here in Florida have talked about Black Florida Panthers. First of all, Florida Panthers are basically a Cougar. There has never ever been a Black Cougar or a Florida Panther ever found. No record of them, no pictures, no hides, no skins, nothing. but still we hear these stories of black cats that lurk in the wilds of Florida," says Hitzig. "Maybe we have kind of found that missing piece of the puzzle and we now know what everybody's been talking about when they say, 'I saw a Black Panther in the wild.' But really they saw a Black Bobcat."
The sanctuary says they'll be working with the state to run DNA and blood tests. They want to make sure there's official documentation that the Black Bobcat exists... even if the Black Panther does not. The sanctuary plans to return the Black Bobcat to the wild
One large FL jet black cat!
That's a beautiful cat. I would hate to meet him in the dark. In fact, I'd hate to meet him in the day. :o)
16-20 pounds... is that big enough to be a bobcat?
S-o-o-o clever. LOL.
Do you need a tissue——ROTFLMSO.
PS-—you should take credit. Put your freeper name in the title box.
No, I don’t get credit. That was actually received in email from another Freeper.
LOL! I can find a use for that at work!
Heehee!
I think that was a misprint. You can tell by the size of the rooster.
Question: don’t bobcats/lynxes in FL have the famous ear tufts? I’ve never seen such animals without the distinctive tall thin ear tufts.
Rare Black Bob Cat Captured[Florida]
That’s really cool! But how do you know his name is “Bob?”
I saw on here in Tennesse last yaer, but much bigger perhaps 60-100 pounds. At abot 15 feet away in the sunlight you could see leopard like spots underneath. Strage thing, it was in an industrial area and was not afraid at all and paid no attention to the five people wathing from across the creek.
Animals are strange that way.
I saw a pair of Mt. Lions not 75 feet away from a major highway in CA a few years back, it was broad daylight about 2 PM, and there was plenty of traffic.
Some earth had been piled up to make a pond and they were on the downside part of it digging - I presume for ground squirrels, which are very abundant there.
I grew up in Nassau County and saw as a child on a dirt road way out in the country a very large black cat which I thought must be a panther. I had seen a bobcat before in someone’s car as a pet but it was brown and not as big as what I thought i was seeing. I was really astonished, and somewhat afraid, but I was SO CURIOUS I kept walking ahead. It seemed pretty far in the distance, but I was familiar with the road, and thought I could judge about where it crossed. When I got to that place everything was quiet, and I saw nothing, and I was tired from the walk, so I went home and told my parents. They thought I made it up, or imagined it or something. Guess they never heard of a black bobcat that big either. I KNOW what I saw. I can still remember it.
My wife and I are from Hilliard and Callahan.
You probably saw the panther that some say escaped from the Alligator Farm that used to be on US1...........
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