Miami, Jan 1 (EFE).– A record 41 endangered Florida panthers were killed in 2015, mostly as a result of collisions with motor vehicles, state authorities said Friday.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, or FWC, said the new record was attributable to the state’s growing human population, a demographic trend that is leading to greater contact between people and these big cats.

The FWC says the number of panthers struck and killed by vehicles rose from 24 in 2014 to 30 in 2015 and urges motorists to reduce their speed when driving in rural areas, particularly between dusk and dawn when the large, tawny-colored cats are most active.

Florida’s wild panther population is currently estimated at between 100 and 180 animals, according to the commission.

The Florida panther, whose population fell to around 30 in the 1970s, was listed as a federally endangered species in 1967. EFE