Study says Florida panther rebound fueled by Texas cats

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By the mid-1990s, the endangered Florida panther was down to about 30 adults %u2014 a creature plagued by heart defects, sexual abnormalities and other signs of inbreeding.

Then came eight Texas cougars. A decade later, the panther's adult population has nearly tripled to 87 while spreading to previously untouched regions of the Everglades.

Related story:

With Fresh Blood, Inbred Florida Panthers Rebound

A controversial breeding program has improved the genetic diversity of inbred Florida panthers and the endangered animals are on the rebound, scientists announced today.

Yet while the hybrid cats are spreading their range, they're not out of the woods yet.

As few
as 30 wild panthers roamed the Florida Everglades in the early 1990s.
Abnormalities such as low sperm counts and heart defects were becoming
common, studies found, and the kittens had low survival rates.