FLORIDA — This week, Florida approved thousands of acres to be preserved in its wildlife corridor to help protect endangered species like the panther. But with development spreading fast, a state conservationist says this might not be enough.
Hear what the state conservationist told Community Correspondent Austin Schargorodski:
Governor Ron DeSantis approved protecting more than 34,000 acres through the Florida Forever program, including nearly 4,000 in Hendry and Collier counties.
This preserves land in the wildlife corridor that stretches up the state, which is crucial for species like the panther. However, Executive Director of the South Florida Wildlands Association Matthew Schwartz believes the reality is more complicated.
"The initial reaction to any land in Florida that’s taken off the table for development is something we’re happy to hear about - it's a good thing," Schwartz said.
But Schwartz says while land preservation makes headlines, what’s lost to development doesn’t get the same attention.
"That would give a truer picture of what’s happening with development and what’s happening with remaining panther habitat - panther habitat is not protected," Schwartz said.
Earlier this year, I told you about the state’s plan to build wildlife crossings to help panthers safely move north. It’s a key step under the Endangered Species Act, which requires multiple established populations for their recovery.
But Schwartz says if development keeps sprawling, there may be nowhere left for them to go. "Central Florida is already too developed,” said Schwartz. “It’s crisscrossed with highways and developments, and the public lands are much smaller than in Southwest Florida.”
Just this week, I told you about an 1,100-home development that got approved in Alva—an area where people tell me they often see panthers. Schwartz says projects like this bring more cars, making a growing problem worse.
FWC reports vehicle collisions cause 90% of panther deaths. There are only about 200 Florida panthers left in the wild. Last year, 36 were killed - just shy of a record high - and three have already died this year.
"If you take roughly two cars per household and times the number of vehicle trips per day, we’re adding tens of thousands of new vehicles to the roads in the same area we’re protecting the habitat," Schwartz said.
Ultimately, Schwartz says he’s not hopeful preserving land alone will save the wildlife corridor.
"If we want to have wildlife in the state, we’re going to have to make really difficult decisions about where people can and can’t live," Schwartz said.
