Save The Florida Panther's topics - tribe.net

friday deadline!

2007-06-14T16:48:59Z

meow,

once again our friends the florida panthers need our help. please take a moment to fill out the online form.

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/721420633?z00m=9438672

posted in Save The Florida Panther - 0 replies

Florida Panther Links

2007-03-20T19:10:17Z

http://www.panthersociety.org/link.html

I live in the swamps of rural North Florida and while officially, the only panthers in the hood are living behind a fence, sometimes late at night you hear cat sounds over the general swamp opera.

posted in Save The Florida Panther - 3 replies

Panther awareness for kids

2007-03-20T19:03:29Z

You can find a lot of educational and fun stuff for kids at
http://myfwc.com/panther/
My 8-year-old daughter loves to play the Florida Panther Mystery Game, which you can print out for free from
http://myfwc.com/panther/games/offline/
When I play it with her, we both learn stuff about Florida wildlife, including panthers. (I'm from the midwest, so the plants and animals here are a little different than what I grew up with) She also understands and cares about issues of development and habitat loss. If we can keep the panthers and other wildlife around until the next generation grows up...

posted in Save The Florida Panther - 1 reply

Panther #79 captured and removed from the refuge.

2006-02-27T04:34:58Z

http://www.news-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060217/NEWS0105/602170433/1004/NEWS0102

Last week Florida and US government officials darted, captured and relocated one of the few remaining Florida Panthers from the Panther refuge. The problem is that there are "in-holdings" on the preserve. 79 was eating chickens, ducks and a hog from a couple of the homes that are located in, and surrounded by the refuge. In the last month, there have been 4 panther deaths from panther<-> car encounters. Panther 79 has been "relocated" to the vet school at the University of Florida in Gainesville.

I'm currently preparing a podcast on the Florida panther as part of my North Florida series (http://www.tallycast.com). I'm looking for people to interview for the production and especially for appropriate music.

posted in Save The Florida Panther - 0 replies

floridian complicity

2006-01-26T17:41:39Z

update from PEER (public employees for environmental responsibility)

FISH & WILDLIFE SERVICE FIRES PANTHER WHISTLEBLOWER
Agency Does Not Dispute Orders to Suppress Scientific Findings

Washington, DC — The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service has decided to terminate the biologist who publicly challenged its reliance on flawed studies about the habitat and population of the endangered Florida panther, according to Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER). The agency’s action comes ten weeks after a federal court found the agency guilty of scientific fraud on the same grounds raised by the now-former employee.

Andrew Eller, Jr., an 18-year FWS biologist, had spent the past ten years working in the Florida panther recovery program. This spring, he filed formal charges that studies relied upon by the Fish & Wildlife Service (FWS) to make decisions about proposed development in Southwest Florida inflate panther population and inaccurately minimize habitat needs. One week after that filing, the agency proposed his termination. On Friday, November 5th, FWS finalized its termination of Eller.

“This case is about whether scientific dissent will be tolerated under the Bush Administration,” stated PEER General Counsel Richard Condit who will be leading Eller’s legal challenge of his firing. “A federal court found the agency knowingly used junk science to okay projects, but the official committing the fraud gets a commendation while the one who exposed it is fired.”

Contending that its actions were motivated solely by the timeliness of Eller’s work, FWS officials did not reply to Eller’s affidavit citing evidence of retaliation, including --

* Threats by supervisors for voicing biological concerns about the effects of development projects in panther habitat;
* Orders to delete “jeopardy” findings from biological opinions; and
* Ignoring scientific flaws that Eller raised, including unrealistic assumptions about panther reproduction rates and kitten survival.

Many of the assignments cited by FWS involve the controversies surrounding the science on the endangered panther and other threatened species in one of the fastest growing areas of the country, known as the Western Everglades. Considered among the most endangered mammals on the planet, there are only an estimated 87 of these big cats left in existence.

PEER and Eller have 30 days to appeal the termination to the federal civil service court called the Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB). MSPB can also immediately restore Eller pending final resolution of the matter. In the meantime, FWS has yet to act on Eller’s charges of scientific fraud against it. A three-member review committee empanelled by FWS is slated to make findings later this fall.

Fed court rules data on florida panthers incorrect/inacurate

Washington, DC — A federal judge has ruled that the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service relied on flawed biology in failing to protect the Florida panther. The court’s findings mirror concerns raised by one of the agency’s own biologists who is now facing termination, according to Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER).

This past Friday, U.S. District Judge James Robertson revoked a permit for a limestone mine slated for excavation amid 6,000 acres of endangered Florida panther habitat in the Western Everglades region near Ft. Myers. The judge ruled that the Fish & Wildlife Service illegally ignored scientific evidence indicating that further human intrusion could jeopardize the small remaining population of Florida panthers. There are only an estimated 87 of these big cats left in existence and they are considered among the rarest mammals on the planet.

Andrew Eller is a 17-year biologist who worked on the biological opinion for the proposed Florida Rock Industries limestone mine that was struck down by the court. Eller has publicly raised the very weaknesses cited by the judge in ruling that the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service had been “arbitrary and capricious” in finding no potential harm to the endangered panther:

* Agency managers insisted on using faulty panther population and habitat studies;
* Eller and other biologists were under orders to issue “no jeopardy” opinions on projects (thus allowing construction to proceed) regardless of the facts;
* Eller was threatened with adverse performance reviews if he concluded that a project may pose some jeopardy for a federally endangered animal; and
* The agency turned a blind eye to the cumulative effects of multiple development projects on the panther.

Eller raised these issues publicly in a challenge filed with PEER accusing the Fish & Wildlife Service of violating the Data Quality Act for knowingly using flawed science. In reply, the agency admitted some of the flaws but contended that no regulatory decision was affected by the challenged data (a contention invalidated by Judge Robertson’s decision). After making that admission, the Fish & Wildlife proposed to fire Eller on precisely the grounds for which he had been previously threatened.

“Political pressure forces federal biologists, like Andy Eller, to make choices daily between following the law and their consciences on one hand and the orders from their superiors on the other,” stated PEER Executive Director Jeff Ruch whose organization is assembling a legal defense team for Eller. “In a just world, the Fish & Wildlife Service leadership who the judge found to be violating the very laws they are charged with enforcing should be fired, not Andy Eller.”

The National Wildlife Federation, the Florida Wildlife Federation and the Florida Panther Society brought the lawsuit against the Florida Rock permit.

posted in Save The Florida Panther - 1 reply

hope yet, keep it up, write letters, pray, believe

2005-07-04T22:34:19Z

i tried to initiate a lawsuit against fish & game for the lives of the florida panthers, and no one came thru for me with the legal help i needed, so i just did what i do, and it looks like maybe things will change for OUR florida panthers!!! check this:

Congratulations! Your financial contribution, support and activism over the past year have paid off.

Approximately 14 months ago, PEER and Andrew Eller, an 18-year USFWS biologist, filed a joint complaint accusing the agency of knowingly using flawed science in assessing the habitat and population of the endangered Florida panther. http://www.peer.org/news/news_id.php?row_id=361

As a result of your involvement (i.e. pressure on the agency), Andrew Eller and the Fish & Wildlife Service have reached an agreement—one day before the trial was to begin.

Nearly 4,000 petition signatures were generated, numerous letters to Members of Congress were written, thousands of dollars to the legal defense fund were donated and support of the work PEER does to protect those who protect the environment proved to tip the scale.

jaguar, take a bow, you’ve earned it…and we thank you! A victory for Andrew Eller is a huge win for not only the Florida Panther but also the many other scientists, resource professionals and law enforcement officers who strive for environmental ethics and government accountability.

meow!

posted in Save The Florida Panther - 0 replies

that's why they call him "chief

2005-06-02T23:33:19Z

“What is Man

Without the Beasts?

If All Beasts Were Gone,

Man Would Die a Great

Loneliness of Spirit.

For Whatever Happens

To the Beasts,

Also Happens to Man.

All Things are Connected. Whatever Befalls Earth,

Befalls the Sons of Earth.”

- Chief Seattle

posted in Save The Florida Panther - 0 replies

living in a time prophecied of....

2005-06-02T23:32:24Z

Remember what one Hopi Elder said...

Gather yourselves...
see who is in there with u.
Do u know where yer water comes from, yer food ?
The time of the lone wolf is over.
Banish the word struggle from yer vocabulary.
Do not take anything personally.
We are the ones we have been waiting for.

- Thomas Bancaya Oraibi Nation

posted in Save The Florida Panther - 0 replies

sacredjaguarfoundation.org trying to Sue U.S. to Recover our florida panthers

2005-04-30T22:40:01Z

can anyone help with this??? looking for a lawyer's/legal input, if ya know an environmental lawyer can you email me their info! i figure it's worth a shot, but time is CRITICAL!!!

please, this cat has very little time left!

posted in Save The Florida Panther - 0 replies

send an email to protect the Everglades and the FL panther!

2005-04-07T22:04:34Z

here's a link to BioGems website, a great org to join - its free, and their website has a lot of info on different areas that are in danger. right now they are asking people to write in requesting mining permits to be cancelled in the everglades, this directly threatens the panthers and other species' wellbeing in their wild habitat. check it out , its easy to be involved :
http://www.savebiogems.org/everglades/fastfacts.asp

once you enter in your info, you can send alot of letters voicing your opinion about different areas & different species, they have it set up to go to the right people. thanks everyone for caring.

posted in Save The Florida Panther - 2 replies

cali 4 the earth!

2005-04-07T21:52:15Z

here are some emails for barbara boxer

Dear Friend:

Thank you for recently sending me an email with your thoughts. I hear
from thousands of Californians every day and I value your
participation.

While I note all messages sent to my office, because of the tremendous
number of emails I receive, those sent using third party services will
not
receive a response. If you would like to receive a response to your
message, please use the email service available on my Senate website.
Going to http://boxer.senate.gov/contact/webform.cfm will take you
directly to this service.

You may also sign up to receive regular updates on my work in the
Senate
by using my website. At http://boxer.senate.gov/contact/email.cfm you
can
sign up to receive messages from me on current issues of the day.

Thank you again for contacting me. I look forward to hearing from you
in
the future.

Sincerely,

Barbara Boxer

posted in Save The Florida Panther - 0 replies

STOP THIS!

2005-04-07T07:12:23Z

when i read the below i understood the dept of fish/game/wildlife is a TOTAL SELLOUT ORGANIZATION that is as corrupt as everyone else involved in our government!!!!!

there are currently 30-50 florida panthers, here in our own country, left in existence, and they are being called "a zoo species with no hope of recover in the wild" = death sentence for the florida panther, you're watching it right here right now, there are massive developement plans for the florida panther prime habitat that will push this cat, here in the home of the free, into TOTAL IRREVOCABLE EXTINCTION in the wild.

again speechless by human's inhumanity to all life on this planet!

www.peer.org/news/news_id.php

For Immediate Release: March 21, 2005
Contact: Chas Offutt (202) 265-7337

AGENCY ADMITS PANTHER WHISTLEBLOWER WAS RIGHT — Fish & Wildlife Service Persists in Trying to Fire Vindicated Scientist

Washington, DC — The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (USFWS) today formally conceded that it has been using flawed science in assessing the habitat and population of the endangered Florida panther, according to a letter from outgoing Director Steve Williams. The agency announcement came in a decision to uphold a legal complaint filed jointly by one of the agency’s own biologists and Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER) that studies relied upon by FWS in approving proposed development in Southwest Florida inflate panther population and inaccurately minimize habitat needs.

Andrew Eller, Jr., an 18-year USFWS biologist, in the Florida panther recovery program who filed the complaint with PEER, was fired by FWS the week after the November election. PEER is contesting Eller’s termination; that case is slated for hearing in April.

The PEER/Eller complaint contends that FWS engaged in scientific fraud by —

* Equating daytime habitat use patterns (when the panther is at rest) with nighttime habitat use patterns (when the panther is most active);
* Assuming that all known panthers are breeding adults, discounting juvenile, aged and ill animals; and
* Using population estimates, reproductive rates, and kitten survival rates not supported by field data.

“While we are gratified by this decision we are mystified why the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service insists on firing the biologist who risked his career to expose this scientific fraud,” stated PEER Executive Director Jeff Ruch, noting that the Service embraced flawed science in order to sign off on mega-developments planned in the Western Everglades on the basis that the projects would have no adverse effects on the panther. “We are concerned that the Fish and Wildlife Service has charged the very officials who perpetuated the fraud with correcting it.”

The Florida panther complaint was filed under the Data Quality Act which requires each federal agency to ensure and maximize “the quality, objectivity and integrity of information” it disseminates to the public and uses in its decision-making. FWS has now pledged to remove certain studies and put disclaimers on others but will not complete the corrections that it says are needed for several months.

“The Fish & Wildlife Service currently is reviewing 30 very large projects slated for construction right in the middle of prime panther habitat,” Ruch added. “The delayed effective date for promised corrections may allow the agency to continue to approve projects on the basis of admittedly flawed science.”

posted in Save The Florida Panther - 2 replies