LAKELAND, Fla. — Editor's Note: The photo above is a generic image and not the panther that was killed.
An endangered Florida panther has died after being struck by a car in Polk County.
The remains of the 2-year-old male panther were found Sunday near Lakeland, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission reports.
The area where the animal was found was about 328 feet south of U.S. 92, according to The Lakeland Ledger. The wildlife agency says it suspects a car crash was the cause of death for the feline.
It’s the 11th panther death attributed to deadly collisions this year, wildlife leaders explain.
Florida panthers once roamed the entire Southeast, but now their habitat mostly is confined to a small region of Florida along the Gulf of Mexico. Up to 230 Florida panthers remain in the wild.
The news of the animal's death comes just weeks after a 1-year-old Florida panther was hit and killed by a car in Clewiston.
The remains of the 1-year-old female panther were found along a rural road near Dinner Island Ranch Wildlife Management Area in Hendry County, wildlife officials said.
10 Tampa Bay's Courtney Holland contributed to this report.
