Bobcat

Appearance

Bobcats are small to medium-sized cats with muscular bodies, distinct markings, and a short bobbed tail (4-6"). Adult bobcats generally weigh between 12 and 25 pounds. Females are much smaller than males. Bobcats are sometimes confused with other cat species. Once you know what to look for, it is easy to identify them.

Bobcats have round face with ruffs of fur on the side of the head giving the appearance of sideburns. They have pointed ears and short ear tufts with prominent white dots on the back of the ears. Their body is covered in brown to light gray fur with black spots and bars, and the tip of the tail is black on top and white on the underside.

• Bobcats are approximately one quarter the size of mountain lion.
• Bobcats are generally two to three times as large as a domestic house cat with a more muscular body.
• Bobcat tails are “bobbed” in appearance and much shorter than the tail of mountain lion or domestic cat.

Diet

Bobcats are mostly carnivorous. Their diet consists of a variety of animals, such as rabbits, rodents, wood rats, porcupines, raccoons, deer fawns, birds, amphibians, reptiles, and insects. Bobcats will stalk or ambush their prey from the ground, trees, logs, or rocks. They sometimes consume plant materials such as grass. Bobcats will also opportunistically hunt pets or small livestock such as chickens if those animals are not kept in a secure enclosure at night.

Reproduction

Males and females only associate for the brief time required for courtship and mating. Females usually have a litter of 3 kittens born between April and July. They give birth in dens found in caves, hollow logs or trees. Young bobcats disperse at around 8 months old.

Bobcats are known to be solitary and elusive. They avoid people. Bobcats are generally most active at night and during twilight hours, though it is not unusual to see them during daytime. Bobcats do not pose a threat to public safety, but may attempt to hunt an outdoor pet or small livestock if those animals are not securely enclosed at night.

Bobcats can be found in diverse habitats throughout most of California. Suitable bobcat habitat can include chaparral vegetation types, the brushy stages of low and mid-elevation conifer, oak, pinyon-juniper woodlands and forests, to riparian and desert environments. Bobcats prefer areas with dense brush cover and will use cavities in rocks, snags logs, and stumps for cover and denning.

The two-year California Statewide Bobcat Population Monitoring Project was first implemented July 1, 2021 and ended June 30, 2022. A Bobcat Management Oversight Group (BOMOG) was formed comprised of key staff from around the state. Next, a Technical Advisory Group (TAG) was formed comprised of various subject matter experts and researchers within CDFW to help implement the study. The study used an integrated approach to collect robust data to monitor the bobcat population in California, including the following methods:

• Collecting scat samples for fecal DNA analysis to identify individual animals and estimate population size via a capture/recapture model.
• Collecting camera data at 48 study areas around the state using nearly 500 motion-activated cameras at any given time.
• Each study area was 40 square km (approx. 15 square miles) with 80 motion-activated cameras recording images for six weeks before cameras are moved to the next study area.
• Images were stored in Wildlife Insights, a cloud-based platform, using machine learning to identify animals in camera trap images from each study area.

The Bobcat Program is currently identifying sites for long-term monitoring throughout the state in accordance with the Statewide Bobcat Conservation and Management Plan. Long-term monitoring will address bobcat population trends, survival and reproduction, and threats such as those from climate change (wildfire, drought, etc.).