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1st endangered Florida panther death of 2019 reported

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LABELLE, Fla. (AP) - An endangered Florida panther has been struck and killed by a vehicle.

It's the first panther death reported this year.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission says the remains of the 3-year-old male were collected last week on State Road 80 east of LaBelle in rural Hendry County.

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.

(Copyright 2019 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)