Two Florida panther kittens killed on Hendry County road

A few deaths in the past week increased the number of Florida panthers found dead this year to 24.

Two 4-month-old panthers — a male and a female — were found dead Wednesday, Oct. 10, on a Hendry County road, said Mark Lotz, a panther biologist with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

A road sign warns motorists about Florida panther habitat in the Everglades.

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The kittens were walking along State Road 846, bordered in parts by canals, and likely were using the road to get to a spot where they could go back into the woods with their mother, Lotz said.

Multiple Florida panthers in the same family getting killed at the same time is uncommon, Lotz said.

“When they’re moving around, going from one place to another, they’re traveling together as a family group,” Lotz said.

Although the kittens were found near each other, it’s impossible to know whether they were hit at the same time or whether one was hit and the other stuck around and was hit separately , Lotz said.

A third dead panther was found Sunday, Oct. 7. The 5-year-old male panther died after it was struck by a vehicle on State Road 29 north of Immokalee, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission reported

By the numbers:A look at Florida panther deaths from 2014 to 2018

In September:Florida panther found dead in Collier County, marking 21 this year statewide

You can report injured or dead panthers to the FWC Wildlife Alert Hotline at 888-404-FWCC (3922).