In the novel, the Taiga people are known as the Panther Clan, and the endangered mountain cat symbolizes the dwindling tribe. The Taiga tribe has 30 remaining in their number, which is about the same number of Floridian panthers left in the 1990s. Due to its endangered status, the cat is protected from hunting by state and federal laws. It is also believed to be a sacred ancestor of the Taiga tribe. When Ama kills the panther, she breaks the law but also kills a spiritual symbol of herself and her tribe. The mystery of why Ama killed the cat is a focal point of the story that illuminates the complexity of Indigenous and Western cultural identity, legal systems, and ways of knowing.

In the modern world, the idea of the panther is loved and protected while the actual animal is either a nuisance or the subject of ridicule and torture. The panther is the high school mascot, and the students bully Omishto and ostracize her for killing the cat. However, the same kids are also known to “tree” panthers— a process of trapping them there and threatening to shoot them. People in town are afraid of the cats and don’t want them to live nearby.