Bobcat Info

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Bobcat Info

Genus:

Felis Rufus

SIZE: Length:

25 - 42 in

Tail:

8 in

Height:

20 - 24 in

Weight:

13 - 24 lbs up to 40 lbs

BREEDING: Sexual maturity:

1 yr. Males mate in 2nd yr

Mating Season:

November - January

Gestation:

60 - 63 days

No. of Young:

1 - 6 Usually 3

Birth Weight:

283 - 368g (10 - 13 oz)

LIFESTYLE: Habit:

Solitary and Nocturnal

Diet:

Mainly Rabbits and Hares,Rodents,Sheep,Deer,and Birds.

Lifespan:

12 - 15 yrs in wild Over 30 yrs in Captivity.

Territory Size:

1 - 42 Square Miles

Top Speed:

30 mph

The bobcat is shirt-tailed like the lynx but is generally smaller and has less conspicuous ear tufts.

Distribution

Found extensively throughout North America from Southern Canada to Southern Mexico.

Habits

The bobcat is active at dawn and dusk.In the northern part of its range, it will even hunt by day in the winter if food is scarce. They are extremely territorial and marks its boundaries with urine and droppings, as well as by digging up the ground.Mothers with young are extremely aggressive.

Food & Hunting

Rabbits and hares make up two-thirds of the bobcat`s diet.The remainder consists of squirrels and mice. And sometimes prey on deer domestic sheep and goats, and also the occasional cat or dog The bobcat creeps up on its prey until it is close enough to pounce on and kill the animal.They are very strong for its size and kills its large prey by biting and clawing at the base of the skull.During a night-long hunt a male may trevel as far as 25 miles to find prey.

Breeding

Mating takes place in the winter,Males mate with all the females that share his territory.The blind and helpless young are born early spring. At this time the female drives the male away from the den, although he usually remains in the area. The kittens eyes open after a week, but they continue to suckle for eight weeks Once the kittens can eat soild food, the female allows the male to return to the den.Male bobcats are unusual among cat species becasue they bring food to both the mother and kittens.As the kittens grow the whole family travels through-out the females territory, living in number of different dens.When the kittens are five months old they learn to hunt from their mother, At this time the male loses intrest in the kittens and he returns to his own territory.The young stay with thier mother for six to nine months, or untill the next breeding season. They then find territories of their own.

Did You Know ?

The bobcat gets its name from its stumpy tail.

A bobcat is likely to be seen during the day only in winter when food is scarce.

Bobcats are good swimmers,but they rarely go into the water. Still on hot days they sometimes sit in pools of water to keep cool.

The further north bobcats live the bigger they grow, the largest are found in Canada.

There Are 13 Subspecies Of BobCats

Lynx rufus gigas (northern New York to Nova Scotia and New Brunswick)

Lynx rufus rufus (eastern and midwestern United States)

Lynx rufus floridanus (southeastern United States and inland to southwestern Missouri and southern Illinois)

Lynx rufus superiorensis (western Great Lakes area)

Lynx rufus californicus (California west of the Sierra Nevada)

Lynx rufus mohavensis (California’s Mojave Desert)

Lynx rufus texensis (western Louisiana, Texas, south central Oklahoma, and south into Tamaulipas, Nuevo León, and Coahuila)

Lynx rufus baileyi (southwestern United States and northwestern Mexico)

Lynx rufus escuinipae (primarily central Mexico, but also along Mexico’s west coast)

Lynx rufus fasciatus (Oregon, Washington, northwestern California, and southwestern British Columbia)

Lynx rufus peninsularis (Baja California)

Lynx rufus oaxacensis (Oaxaca, Mexico)

Lynx rufus pallescens (northwestern United States and southern British Columbia, Alberta and Saskatchewan

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