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Florida Family Spots Panther On Their Porch

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MIAMI (CBSMiami) -- A family looked outside their window and saw a Florida Panther staring right back at them.

Phil Hendra snapped a picture of the endangered cat sitting on the porch of his father's Fort Myers home on March 18th.

"It stayed for about 20 minutes and laid down for a bit," said Hendra. "It looked at us inside the window then slowly walked away and we have not seen it since."

And this was not the first time they saw one near their home.

"My parents have lived here since 1988 and they may have seen a younger panther about two years ago, but nothing compares to this once in a lifetime experience," said Hendra.

Florida Wildlife Officials clarified that the sighting did not occur in the Oldsmar area of Pinellas County. They also reiterated that anyone who wants to report a panther sighting in Florida can visit: http://bit.ly/1pYivXe.

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