From the Editor

The Marvel blockbuster Black Panther has prompted a lot of fascinating questions from big cat advocates about “black panthers” in the wild, a term referring to melanistic leopards and jaguars. Our Facebook follower Minna Vasarhelyi asked:

With Black Panther coming out this weekend, we wanted to clear up some confusion about T'Challa's superhero identity in the original Marvel comic book story. It's no surprise that a big cat — with its strength, grace, and top rank in the food chain — would become the namesake of a powerful character. But what are wild "black panthers," anyway? We spoke with Panthera's Chief Scientist Dr. Alan Rabinowitz to bust some myths.

Where does the word “panther” come from?