Rare Florida Panther Caught on Tape

(June 18) – A volunteer at a Florida swamp sanctuary got an incredibly lucky shot on Tuesday: he filmed the first clear video of a Florida panther in the wild. Dick Brewer, a retired school teacher, began his day at the Audubon Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary walking the boardwalk with a friend and fellow volunteer.
Brewer spotted what he first thought was a deer on the boardwalk, but soon realized there was a rare Florida panther standing 20 yards from him. He took out his camera and immediately began filming, the St. Petersburg Times reported.

Brewer, 64, has volunteered at the Naples, Fla., sanctuary for 11 years and has caught everything from a black bear and her cubs to some amorous otters on his ever-present video camera. But according to the Times, the odds of seeing a Florida panther are on par with winning the lottery.
Only about 100 Florida panthers survive today, making them one of the rarest animals on Earth. Mark Lotz, a panther specialist with the Florida Wildlife Commission, believes the panther is an adult 100-pound female, Brewer wrote in an e-mail to AOL News.
Brewer and his friend watched and filmed the panther for 44 seconds before it left the boardwalk and headed off into the forest. Brewer also captured a photo of the animal on his digital camera, which he had purchased just the day before.

For more on the story, read the St. Petersburg Times.

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