Panther Killed Along Alligator Alley

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MIAMI (CBSMiami) - For a third time this month, a Florida panther has been struck and killed by a vehicle in Collier County.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) said the 10 and a half year old female, who was wearing a radio collar, was found at mile marker 90 on I-75/Alligator Alley.

The FWC said the panther had been hit by a vehicle. This location is within the high fencing portion of I-75 and but wildlife workers found a hole that the panther used to get out onto the road. The were able to confirmed this because of tufts of panther hair on a strand of barbed wire. A repair has been scheduled by the transportation department.

The panther's body, which is currently at the FWC's field office in Naples, will be sent to the FWC Wildlife Research Lab in Gainesville lab for a complete necropsy.

This is the 32nd Florida panther death this year, 23 of which were killed by vehicles.