Environmental Toxins That Harm Florida Panthers

Much of the panther population lives in the South Florida ecosystem, which is exposed to pollution from suburban, industrial, and agricultural land uses. As a top predator, the panther may accumulate environmental toxins, such as mercury, in its system. 

Panthers are exposed to mercury through the prey they eat, including raccoons and alligators, which accumulate mercury from the fish and crayfish that they eat. Mercury enters the air through factories, coal-fired power plants, and hazardous waste sites. Rainfall then carries the mercury down to the land and water where it is taken up into the ecosystem. 

In 2004, Florida health officials released a list of 172 state rivers and lakes that contain harmful levels of mercury, which can cause developmental problems and other negative health effects in humans. Mercury can cause much of the same problems in wildlife. Roelke (1990) considered mercury a significant contaminant and documented high levels of mercury in blood and hair samples, implicating mercury poisoning in the death of 3 panthers. 

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission tests mercury levels in hair and blood samples from panthers as part of their ongoing monitoring program.

How Mercury Poisons the Florida panther