FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Wednesday, January 17, 1996
CONTACT:
D.J. Schubert, (202) 588-5206
Heidi Prescott, (301) 585-2591
Dr. Mark Goldstein, (904) 375-0607
Today, in a nine-page letter to the Florida Game and Fresh Water Fish Commission, The Fund for Animals and Dr. Mark Kane Goldstein threatened to sue the Commission if it does not release a critically endangered Florida panther back into the wild.
The Commission captured the panther, nicknamed "Waldo," from the Donaldson Tract near Waldo, Florida in March 1995. A Commission veterinarian noted that Waldo "possess[es] several of the physical characteristics normally attributed to the Florida panther," and Waldo was released. The Commission soon after recaptured Waldo, and in October 1995, transferred him to Ashby Acres Wildlife Park. The Park then transferred Waldo to an animal dealer in Missouri.
In an alarming development that raises serious concerns about the care Waldo has received, one of the cougars transferred with Waldo has died in captivity. The Fund for Animals learned earlier today that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has taken possession of Waldo from the dealer.
"Waldo is one of only 30 to 50 Florida panthers left in the wild," says Heidi Prescott, national director of The Fund for Animals. "Rather than being shuffled around the country between animal dealers, Waldo should be in the wild so his subspecies has a chance of survival."
The Florida panther has been listed as a federally endangered species since 1967. The panther population has been so decimated that in 1990, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service concluded that "the loss of a single animal . . . could seriously jeopardize the survival of the subspecies." The Endangered Species Act prohibits the "taking" of any animal that is listed as "endangered." The term "taking" is broadly defined to include "harass, harm, pursue, hunt, shoot, wound, kill, trap, capture, or collect, or to attempt to engage in any such conduct."
Waldo shares several of the physical characteristics that distinguish Florida panthers from other cougars, such as a cowlick at the base of his skull, a roman nose, and white flecks on his head and shoulders. Adds Cleveland Amory, president of The Fund for Animals and best-selling author, "Where do they want Waldo? In a canned hunt? Waldo belongs in one place -- the wild."
To see a copy of the letter, click here.