Thursday, 6/30/11 … black bear confirmed on Sanibel @ Ding Darling, but are there panthers?

Lots of rain today.  We caught plenty of small fish. mostly sea trout.  We had several youngsters on the boat so we kept the action coming.

However, it turned out to be a very interesting day on the islands because of some land based wild life.  A Ding Darling Refuge remote camera caught an image of a young black bear on Sanibel.

They think the bear is most likely a young male, perhaps 1.5 years old with an estimated weight of about 40- 60 pounds.

I continue to believe that there may also be a panther or two in the refuge.  It will be interesting to see if the remote camera system captures a photo of a panther over time.  This would confirm a variety of reported sightings over the last several years.

If there is a panther, my guess is that it is a young male, that similar to the bear, has been pushed out of its range by another older male, likely its father, and probably came across the causeway islands at night.

Fair winds and following seas,

Captain Joey Burnsed ~ call 239-472-8658 or email captjoefred@gmail to book a Sanibel & Captiva fishing charter.