Alligator- The Alligator eats meat like small animal. Alligator are consumers. The American alligator has four short legs, a broad, round snout, a long and powerful tail and a rough hide with scales. Adult males can grow up to 20 feet long and weigh up to half a ton, though on average, males are about 11 feet (3.4 m) long, while females are about 8 feet (2.6 m).
Bald Eagles-Florida has the largest bald eagle population in the lower 48 states.Easily identified by their white heads, distinctive size and soaring flight, bald eagles are often seen flying above Florida’s lakes, estuaries and wetlands. Adults have a white head and tail, chocolate colored plumage, and yellow bill and feet. The characteristic white head and tail develops when the bird becomes sexually mature at about 5 years of age.
Prime nesting habitat consists of tall trees near water. The exception to this general rule occurs in the Florida Keys where bald eagles nest in mangroves and even occasionally on the ground.
Bald eagles feed mainly on fish snatched from the water’s surface with talons, but also take wading birds, small mammals, and carrion. bald eagles are consumers.
www.wildflorida.com/wildlife/birds/Bald_Eagle.php
Prime nesting habitat consists of tall trees near water. The exception to this general rule occurs in the Florida Keys where bald eagles nest in mangroves and even occasionally on the ground.
Bald eagles feed mainly on fish snatched from the water’s surface with talons, but also take wading birds, small mammals, and carrion. bald eagles are consumers.
www.wildflorida.com/wildlife/birds/Bald_Eagle.php
Bobcats-Aside from the Florida panther, the bobcat is the only other feline specifies that can be found throughout Florida, according to the Coryi Foundation Inc., an organization that advocates wildlife education, conservation and research. Bobcats can be found throughout the United States, but there is an abundance of the four-legged mammals in every county of the Sunshine State. Because bobcats prefer habitats with deep forests, rural areas and swampy areas, Florida is home to most of the nation's bobcats.
Read more: Facts on Wild Bobcats in Florida | eHow http://www.ehow.com/info_8544622_wild-bobcats-florida.html#ixzz2U3bRz5bv
The most common wildcat in North America, the bobcat is named for its short, bobbed tail. They are medium-sized cats and are slightly smaller but similar in appearance to their cousin, the lynx. Their coats vary in color from shades of beige to brown fur with spotted or lined markings in dark brown or black.
Bobcats only eat meat, such as cottontail rabbits, wood rats, Florida mice, raccoons, hogs and moles. These carnivores consume about 40 different animal species, and about 70 percent of bobcats' prey comprises of rabbits and rats, according to the Coryi Foundation, Inc. Because most of the animals bobcats eat are small, bobcats hunt a multitude of animals in order to be satisfied.
Read more: Facts on Wild Bobcats in Florida | eHow http://www.ehow.com/info_8544622_wild-bobcats-florida.html#ixzz2U3cGe0Uv
Read more: Facts on Wild Bobcats in Florida | eHow http://www.ehow.com/info_8544622_wild-bobcats-florida.html#ixzz2U3bRz5bv
The most common wildcat in North America, the bobcat is named for its short, bobbed tail. They are medium-sized cats and are slightly smaller but similar in appearance to their cousin, the lynx. Their coats vary in color from shades of beige to brown fur with spotted or lined markings in dark brown or black.
Bobcats only eat meat, such as cottontail rabbits, wood rats, Florida mice, raccoons, hogs and moles. These carnivores consume about 40 different animal species, and about 70 percent of bobcats' prey comprises of rabbits and rats, according to the Coryi Foundation, Inc. Because most of the animals bobcats eat are small, bobcats hunt a multitude of animals in order to be satisfied.
Read more: Facts on Wild Bobcats in Florida | eHow http://www.ehow.com/info_8544622_wild-bobcats-florida.html#ixzz2U3cGe0Uv
The Florida black bear is the largest native land mammal in Florida. It is shy and secretive, hiding in dense vegetation and rarely seen in the wild. The Florida black bear has a shiny, black coat of long fur and a light brown nose and snout. Some black bears have white diamond-shaped patterns on their chests. The black bear has a short tail that is almost always hidden by its long fur, and long, sharp claws that help the bear climb trees or dig for food. Bears are omnivores, meaning they eat both vegetable and animal matter. Some foods a black bear may eat include acorns, insects, berries, saw palmetto and sabal palm fruits, armadillos and honey.Long thought to only be in search of honey, many bear biologists now believe that when a bear cracks open a bee hive, it's actually looking for both the sweetness of the honey and the protein provided by the bee larvae! With a diet like this, it is no wonder that female bears can weigh between 150 to 300 pounds and male bears can weigh between 250 to 450 pounds. Most Florida black bears are between 5 to 6 feet long and are about 3 feet high at the shoulder. But it's not because of their size that black bears are called an "umbrella species." Because of their broad ecological requirements, black bears need a variety of habitats over a large geographic area. As such, they share living space with a variety of other protected, threatened and endangered animals. Some of these include the gopher tortoise, Eastern Indigo snake and the Florida scrub jay. By protecting the Florida black bear and its habitat, we also protect these other species' habitats. In this way, everybody gets protection under the umbrella! You see, the Florida black bear is an important part of Florida's ecosystems.
http://www.swfwmd.state.fl.us/education/interactive/springscoast/blackbear.shtml
http://www.swfwmd.state.fl.us/education/interactive/springscoast/blackbear.shtml
The Cougar, Puma, Mountain Lion, Panther, or Catamount (Felis concolor) is a fierce cat that lives deep in deciduous forests, rain forests, grasslands, and deserts of North America and South America. These solitary cats can purr but cannot roar. Very athletic, these cats are excellent jumpers, climbers and swimmers.
Cougars have a life span of about 8 years. There are many subspecies of cougar. Cougars are an endangered species due to loss of habitat and over-hunting by man.
Anatomy: The cougar has keen eyesight and good hearing. It has a small head, big ears, powerful jaws, long, pointed canine teeth, and sharp, retractable claws on each foot. The brown eyes have circular pupils. These powerful cats are up to 6 feet (1.8 m) long, plus a long tail that is 2-3 ft (60-90 cm) long. It weighs up to 200 pounds (90 kg). The young have a spotted coat, but become solid tan to gray-brown at six months of age.
Diet: The cougar is a carnivore (a meat-eater). It is a fast, solitary hunter that hunts both during the day and at night. It eats deer, wild hogs, sheep, moose, elk, rabbits, hares,rodents (like beavers), raccoons, some birds, and livestock. Cougars stalk their prey and then ambush it by leaping from the ground or from a tree. They kill large animals by pouncing on the back and breaking the neck. They bury large prey with leaves and twigs to hide the carcass from other animals until they are able to finish eating it.Cougars
http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/mammals/cats/cougar/Cougarprintout.shtml
There are only over 160 panthers left in Florida because humans are chomping down the forest and building houses over them.
Cougars have a life span of about 8 years. There are many subspecies of cougar. Cougars are an endangered species due to loss of habitat and over-hunting by man.
Anatomy: The cougar has keen eyesight and good hearing. It has a small head, big ears, powerful jaws, long, pointed canine teeth, and sharp, retractable claws on each foot. The brown eyes have circular pupils. These powerful cats are up to 6 feet (1.8 m) long, plus a long tail that is 2-3 ft (60-90 cm) long. It weighs up to 200 pounds (90 kg). The young have a spotted coat, but become solid tan to gray-brown at six months of age.
Diet: The cougar is a carnivore (a meat-eater). It is a fast, solitary hunter that hunts both during the day and at night. It eats deer, wild hogs, sheep, moose, elk, rabbits, hares,rodents (like beavers), raccoons, some birds, and livestock. Cougars stalk their prey and then ambush it by leaping from the ground or from a tree. They kill large animals by pouncing on the back and breaking the neck. They bury large prey with leaves and twigs to hide the carcass from other animals until they are able to finish eating it.Cougars
http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/mammals/cats/cougar/Cougarprintout.shtml
There are only over 160 panthers left in Florida because humans are chomping down the forest and building houses over them.