Felis rufus
California Department of Fish and Game "Harvest
Species"
Life History
The bobcat is a relatively large cat with gray to reddish fur, spotted with brown or
black. It has long legs, a short or "bob" tail that tends to be barred with black, and sharp-pointed ears. They are larger than domestic cats but much smaller than mountain lions. They
may weigh up to 11.3-25.8 kg (25-57 lb) and have a life span of 10-14 years.
Bobcats can utilize just about any habitat and may be found throughout the entire state.
Suitable habitats consist of large areas of broken, rough, rocky terrain supporting brushy
deciduous and conifer forests or chaparral, adjacent to smaller areas of riparian habitat and
stands of dense forest. Optimal habitats tend to be brushy stages of low and mid-elevation
conifer, oak, riparian, and pinyon-juniper forests, and all stages of chaparral. Water
availability may limit distribution in dry regions.
Activity tends to begin at dusk, continue throughout the night, ending at dawn. The
daylight hours are spent resting in cover areas such as rock cavities, hollow logs, snags,
stumps, and dense brush. These cover areas may also be used as dens during the breeding
season.
Their diet consists of various lagomorphs, rodents, a few small deer (mostly fawns),
some birds, amphibians, reptiles, and invertebrates. Although they are largely carnivorous,
they also may consume substantial amounts of vegetation, mostly fruits and some
grass. Prey is caught by stalking or ambushing
from trees or atop logs or rocks. Long pursuits of prey are very unusual, most last only a few
leaps or bounds. If a large prey item is caught and too large to consume in one day, it may be
cached away.
Home ranges vary from 0.6-201.0 km2 (0.4-125 mi2) depending upon population levels of a
given area. Within each home range is territory defended against any threats or intruder
bobcats. This area is scent marked which appears to reduce actual contact and subsequently making fighting
unusual.
Breeding usually occurs in winter. The gestation
period is 50 to 70 days with young probably born in spring. The litter size ranges from one to
seven kittens who feed on mothers milk for about 60 days. Females reach sexual maturity at
one year, males at two.
Natural predators to the bobcat are great horned owls which may take young
and adults occasionally are taken by mountain lions and domestic dogs.
Competition may also exist between bobcats and coyotes and when coyote
numbers are reduced by predator control, bobcat numbers may increase.
|
