Florida’s schoolchildren chose the panther as the state animal, and a decade later it nearly went extinct. But a ragtag band-some scientists, a veterinarian, and a veteran hunter banded together to pull off a risky experiment to save them.

Craig Pittman is a native Floridian. Born in Pensacola, he graduated from Troy State University in Alabama, where his muckraking work for the student paper prompted an agitated dean to label him “the most destructive force on campus.” After 31 years at the Tampa Bay Times, he now writes a weekly column on environmental issues for the Florida Phoenix and co-hosts the podcast “Welcome to Florida.” He has written six non-fiction books about Florida and lives in St. Petersburg.

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