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1500

An estimated 350,000 Native Americans were living in present-day Florida (Milanich, 1995).
How many panthers were in Florida before European Settlement? One estimate of 1,360 has been suggested based on the carrying capacity of Florida's natural communities for white-tailed deer and taking into account other predators as well as Native American hunters (Alvarez, 1993).
Panther Painting by Earnest Simmons
Spaniard Hernando de Soto arrives in the vicinity of Tampa Bay. His original 13 hogs increase rapidly and some escape into the wild. A narrator of his expedition describes "many lions and bears" in Florida.
Trade in deer hides between the Native Americans and the English colonists drastically reduces the deer herds in the Carolinas, Georgia, Alabama, and North Florida. In 1771 alone, 250,000 pounds of hides were exported from Pensacola and Mobile (Wing, 1965)

MATH QUESTION

Each deer hide weighs 1.5 pounds. How many deer would have to be killed to account for 250,000 pounds of hides?

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On to 1800's

THOUGHT QUESTION

What effect do you think trade in deer hides would have on the Florida panther?
References Threats Habitat Natural History site map Home Page Conservation Handbook home page