It seems as though I have been writing about exotic animals lately as I think I have covered all corners of the globe with Wild Facts such as Dingos, Poison Dart Frogs and Fennec Foxes. Today I am going to take Wild Facts back home to Canada. We are going to look at a familiar little cat in North America called the Bobcat. I still remember my parents telling me stories about how they were followed home one night (I think it was after a party, can you believe that MY parents use to party?!?) by a Bobcat. That is pretty much all I can remember about that story. Either I am a horrible story teller or I wasn’t really listening to my parents. You choose!
First and foremost I want to make it clear that the Bobcat is not the same as a Lynx. Although, they are closely related the Bobcat has a few differences which I will outline for you. For starters, they usually have more spots, smaller feet and larger ears than their ever so popular Lynx relatives. Even more surprising is this smaller cat usually has a more aggressive attitude and has been known to run the Lynx off of their captured prey. Maybe my parents should have been worried about that aggressive Bobcat following them home.
I doubt the Bobcat would have eaten my Mom and Dad since they prefer to feast on smaller animals such as birds, rabbits, insects and even fish. The Bobcat is a stealthy hunter that will usually ambush its prey by leaping on them from up to 3 m (10′). You can just imagine the look of surprise on that poor little rabbit’s face. You can normally find this cat hanging out at night in wooded areas, swamps, deserts and have even adapted to city life as they do fairly well around people.
Bobcat Fast Fact – In many areas throughout North America the Bobcat is still trapped for their soft and cuddly fur. Luckily this hasn’t hampered the population as they continue to succeed in the wild. Some have estimated that the population is over 1 million animals in the United States alone. Well done Mr. Bobcat, well done!
I guess that is all for now. Have a great day and I will see you back here at the same time tomorrow.
Many, many years ago, my brother brought home a baby bobcat that had nearly drowned in a stream in the Angeles National Forest. It was tiny and very kittenish, except that it had the biggest, sharpest claws and teeth imaginable and a very shrieky meow! We took it to a wildlife refuge, of course, but it took a couple of days, so it spent the evening at my parents’ home. He was a very sweet little guy, really, and too tame to release back into the wild. I hear that he and a female wound up at a zoo in Germany. I am sure they are both gone now, since this was far longer ago than the normal lifespan of bobcats.
What a great story, Janiss!
It must have been incredible to get a close up look of a baby Bobcat. That is interesting that he was delivered to a zoo in Germany. The little guy was definitely lucky that your brother was there to help him out. It must have been quite an experience.
Thank you so much for sharing such an interesting story… Apparently you are much better at story telling than I am 🙂