Even most active of people likely will never see reclusive bobcat

Published 12:01 am Saturday, October 15, 2011

It would be rare to see a bobcat in a suburban neighborhood, but that doesn’t mean the animals aren’t out from dusk to dawn as they adapt to a human-changed environment.

“They are very secretive, but most people don’t get to see them. Sometimes they are in areas where people wouldn’t normally think they’d be,” said Kestrel Skyhawk of the Sarvey Wildlife Rehabilitation Center in Arlington.

They’re a rare sight even for active, longtime hikers.

“The whole time I’ve been in rehabilitation, 30 years, I’ve only seen three in the wild,” Skyhawk said.

Bobcats move away from any perceived threat, so a cat-human, eye-to-eye stand-off would be an extremely rare event.

“There are no cases of bobcats attacking people,” Skyhawk said, because bobcats are more wary than cougars and wary of cougars, too.

There has been one surprise during her rehabilitation of bobcats.

“They actually have a gentle side to them. They’re trying to survive like anything else. I just get the opportunity to see that. It makes the ‘big bad cat’ not so big and bad.”

The reclusive bobcats are found from southern Canada to southern Mexico. The populations are denser in the southeastern states than in the rest of the U.S. In some states, such as Ohio, the bobcat population probably is on the rise.

A bobcat uses the stalk-crouch-and-pounce attack method, killing with a bite to the neck. Around humans, most hunting is done from dusk to dawn.

Bobcats eat rodents, rabbits, reptiles, gophers, marmots, fawns, insects and, yes, an occasional house cat (there are records of mating with cats) or chicken. They help keep in check an area’s population of rodents and rabbits.

Bobcats are most likely to be found on rock outcroppings, along the edges of wooded areas and in open country with lots of shrubs. Bobcats stay away from deep snow because their feet are not built to keep them on the surface, unlike a lynx, which has larger feet that act like snowshoes.

Bobcats travel on the paths that take the less effort, such as animal trails, along logging roads and, closer to humans, trails and greenways.

When humans want bobcats out of their areas, they call the state Department of Fish and Wildlife. The out-of-sight approach is not as simple as it sounds, at least for the bobcat. Once trapped and released miles away from its original transgression, it usually returns to its original territory, facing other territorial males on the way.

Skyhawk will give a presentation on bobcats Friday at the Northwest Stream Center, 600 128th St. SE, Everett. Registration is required ($7) because class size is limited. Call 425-316-8592.

Columnist Sharon Wootton can be reached at 360-468-3964 or www.songandword.com.

Bobcat facts

Length: 26 to 41 inches, females considerably smaller than males

Weight: Most adult males 20 to 30 pounds (some small females weigh less than a large house cat).

Color: Shades of buff and brown with brown or black stripes and spots, including black on the tail tip and backs of ears

Age: May live up to 12 years in the wild and considerably longer in captivity.

Kits: One to six, generally 3 to 4; mothers nurse, then bring meat to the young (father is long gone). Mothers teach then how to hunt before sending them away at about 8 months.

Range: 3 to 6 square miles, a little larger in Eastern Washington

Game status: Can be killed during hunting season.

Tracks: The round shape, four toes and no claw marks are fairly easy to distinguish from coyotes and dogs, and the size is about twice that of a domestic cat.

Sources include the Department of Fish & Wildlife