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Range: The bobcat (Lynx rufus) ranges from southern Canada to northern Mexico, including much of the continental United States. A mid-sized wild cat, the Bobcat is an adaptable predator that inhabits wooded areas as well as semi-desert, urban, and swamp land environments. It utilizes several methods to mark its territorial boundaries including claw marks and deposits of urine or feces.

Anatomy: The bobcat has characteristic black bars on its forelegs and tail. It also has prominent, pointed ears with short tufts of black hair at the tip. The name is derived from its stubby black-tipped tail. Its coat is most often light gray or various shades of brown in color, with varying degrees of black spots either dispersed along much of its body or relegated to the otherwise white underparts. The Bobcat is twice as large as a house cat but typically smaller than the related Canadian Lynx. The adult male, averaging 36 inches (90 cm) in length, and weighing from 16 to 30 pounds (7 to 14 kg), is generally 30-40% larger than the female. The cat has sharp hearing and vision, and a good sense of smell. It is also an excellent climber. The Bobcat will swim when it needs to, but will normally avoid water.

Behavior: The bobcat is generally most active during twilight and is therefore considered crepuscular. It keeps on the move from three hours before sunset until midnight, then again from before dawn until three hours after sunrise. Each night it will move from two to seven miles (3 to 11 km) along its habitual route. The home range is marked with feces, urine scent, and by clawing prominent trees in the area. In its territory the bobcat will have numerous places of shelter, usually a main den, and several auxiliary shelters on the outer extent of its range, such as hollow logs, brush piles, thickets, or under a rock ledge. Bobcats are carnivorous animals, prefering rabbits and hares, but will hunt anything from insects and small rodents to deer. Prey selection will depend on location and habitat, season, and abundance.

Breeding: The bobcat breeds from winter into the spring and has a gestation period of about two months. One to six, but usually two to four, kittens are born in April or May. There may sometimes be a second litter, with births as late as September. The female generally gives birth in some sort of enclosure, usually a small cave or hollow log. The young open their eyes by the ninth or tenth day. They start exploring their surroundings at four weeks and are weaned at about two months. They will be hunting by themselves by their first fall but remain with the mother until nearly a year old.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article “Bobcat”. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/bobcat