The heaviest wild Florida panther ever recorded in the state has been caught by research scientists—who discovered it weighed 166 pounds. The Florida panther is a type of cougar or mountain lion, which used to be prevalent across the southeastern U.S., but is now only found in southern Florida. Experts say they do not see humans as prey.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) biologists recently captured the heaviest Florida panther ever recorded — weighing 166 pounds.

Wildlife officials captured and released a Florida panther weighing 166 pounds (75 kilograms), which is bigger than average for this subspecies. | Credit: FWC Fish and Wildlife Research Institute ...

Roughly 75 years ago the Florida panther, a unique subspecies of the North American cougar, was nearly extinct when there were only 10 estimated to be