Florida residents can support panther conservation efforts such as rescues, releases and research by purchasing a “Protect the Panther” license plate. Fees from license plate sales are the primary funding source for the FWC’s research and management of Florida panthers.

Where Does My Fee Go?

The fee collected during your purchase of your panther license plate goes directly into the Florida Panther Research and Management Trust Fund (Trust Fund). The Trust Fund is a key source of funding for the State’s panther-related research, rescue and conservation activities. Through the long-term public support of the Trust Fund, critical information gained from the FWC’s monitoring and research efforts continues to provide conservation managers and the public with timely, science-based information needed to guide current and future conservation actions.

To learn more about the Trust Fund and view annual reports dating back the last five years, please visit our Reports, Plans and Suggested Reading page.

What Does My Fee Support?

The FWC’s guiding conservation goal for the Florida panther is to manage this significant wildlife resource for its long-term well-being and the benefit of people.  In order to accomplish this goal, the species must recover from an endangered status and be effectively protected so that panthers can endure future conditions that may affect their population including habitat loss, collisions with vehicles, inbreeding and disease threats.  Through effective research, the FWC and conservation partners monitor several population-related factors that provide important insights regarding the ability of panthers to cope with current threats and future changes.  

We encourage you to explore these panther pages to see the breadth of information FWC has collected during our decades of conservation work on Florida’s State Animal.  The Trust Fund has paid almost entirely for all aspects of our panther work over the past 3 decades.  FWC’s panther program relies upon these license plate purchases to continue these conservation efforts. 

Did you know Florida had panthers? The Florida panther, Puma concolor coryi, is a critically endangered species in the southern regions of Florida. Once rare and almost never seen, the Florida panther has bounced back from a brush with extinction to the point where more frequent encounters have people asking questions about this apex predator. There are misconceptions, misinformation, and misunderstandings about the panther and its habitat, so ecologist and filmmaker Chris Morgan travelled to Florida to get to the bottom of it, in the video published on Sep.. 18, 2019, “The Return of The Florida Panther“, below:

In the video published on Feb. 9, 2017, “Florida Panther, A Love Story“, below:

South Florida is home to an endangered subspecies of cougar, known as the Florida Panther. This orphaned panther was rescued by the FWC and released back into the wild where an estimated 100-160 Florida Panthers remain, in the video published on Aug. 7, 2013, “FLORIDA PANTHER RELEASE”, below: