Panther killer wanted by state, feds

CHAD GILLIS, CGILLIS@NEWS-PRESS.COM2:14 p.m. EDT May 13, 2015

Who would be bold enough to shoot a Florida panther at the edge of a national wildlife refuge that bears the animal's name?

Federal and state investigators want to know the same thing, and they, along with animal advocacy groups, are offering a $15,000 reward for anyone who can help identify the shooter — someone who may have also shot other panthers just north of the Florida Panther National Wildlife Refuge in Collier County.

The panther was killed in March, and the death was initially reported as a road kill. Biologists later confirmed the death was the result of a gunshot, not blunt trauma associated with vehicle collisions. The investigation is being conducted by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the federal agency charged with enforcing the Endangered Species Act.

Continued ...

Yet another Critically Endangered Red wolf killed in North Carolina

When will someone stop this extinction?

February 2013. Yet another Red wolf has been shot dead, adding to the spate of Red wolf shootings at the end of 2012. The wolf was found with a suspected gunshot wound on January 18, 2013, north of the Town of Fairfield, in Tyrrell County, North Carolina.

   

A recent change of rules by the local Wildlife Commission to allow night hunting of coyotes is being blamed as Red wolves are difficult to tall apart from coyote, especially at night. With only some 100 Red wolves living in the wild, each wolf that is killed represents 1% of the population, so some 8% of the population have been shot - Surely this is unsustainable?

Red wolf by Ryan Nordsven,
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Reward for information
Anyone with information that directly leads to an arrest or a criminal conviction for the suspected unlawful take of this red wolf may be eligible for a reward of up to $2,500. Anyone with information on the death of this red wolf or any others, past or future, is urged to contact Special Agent Sandra Allred at (919) 856-4786, Refuge Officer Frank Simms at (252) 216-7504 or North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission Officer Robert Wayne at (252) 216-8225.

The red wolf is protected under The Endangered Species Act. The maximum criminal penalties for the unlawful taking of a red wolf are one year imprisonment and $100,000 fine per individual.

Continued:  http://www.wildlifeextra.com/go/news/red-wolf-killed013.html