panther kitten check up in the den. photo courtesy of ralph arwood
TRANSCRIPT
Big Cypress National Preserve
National Park Service
Panther Kitten Check up in the den.
Pho
to courtesy of R
alph Arw
ood
The Wildlife Biologist determine that a female panther may be denning based on locating her in the same place for more than one week while monitoring collar signals from the air.
They then set up the den monitoring box within 200-300 meters of the den so that they can remotely monitor the female panther more closely using the radio frequency on her collar and a phone set to that frequency. This allows for the Wildlife Biologist to learn the panthers routine so that they know when they can approach the den.
Photos courtesy of Ralph Arwood
When the panther kittens are between 2 and 3 weeks in age the Wildlife Biologist
prepare to go out to search for the den in the day light hours, when they know the
mother will be away long enough for them to check the kittens.
Photos courtesy of Ralph Arwood
Up to 3 biologist experienced in searching for dens, will approach the
den area from different directions. Slowly and cautiously they look
under vegetation for the kittens and carefully bring them out.
Photo courtesy of Ralph Arwood
Once found, they are taken to the work-up site, using caution in protecting their eyes from the vegetation.
A “work-up site” is selected and prepared with the biomedical supplies for handling
up to 4 kittens at a time.
Photo courtesy of Ralph Arwood
At the work up site the kittens are assigned a number, then Wildlife
Biologist determines its gender and then weight it.
Ph
oto
cou
rtesy o
f Ra
lph
Arw
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Photo B
ICY
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IVE
A transponder chip with the kitten’s assigned
number will be inserted, so that if the kitten is
found later they can easily access information that
is recorded. The site between the shoulder blades
is prepared first by cleaning it with alcohol. Then
the transponder which is about the size of a grain
of rice is inserted under skin.
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The Wildlife Biologist plucks a small sample of hair from the side and
belly. Plucked hair usually retains the follicle, making it usable for
genetic analysis. Also a small sample of hair is shaved from the belly
for mercury analysis
Photo courtesy of R
alph Arw
ood
Photo B
ICY
Archive
The kitten is given a de-wormer to reduce their parasitic load. This is
done by placing ½ tsp of de-wormer that is yellow and color and is
reported to taste like bananas into a needleless syringe. Then slowly
inject the liquid on the kitten’s tongue allowing it to lick and swallow it
slowly so it doesn’t go into its lungs.
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Blood is drawn from the jugular of some of the kittens if they
are not too squirmy. This is used to find blood parasites and is
another method of genetic determination.
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The Wildlife Biologist then checks the overall heath of the kitten. They check for a kink in
the tail and cowlick on back. They collect feces if available. Any abnormalities are
recorded through photographs as well as tooth eruption is assessed and photographed.
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The Wildlife Biologist cleans an ear close to the tip to collect
skin biopsies with an ear punch. Gauze is held with pressure
to stop bleeding, and an antiseptic ointment is applied to
site once bleeding has stopped. Then the biopsies are
placed in liquid medium for storage.
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A final step prior to returning the
kittens to the den is to use the
“reader” to make sure each
transponder is still under the skin after
handling.
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