A Bobcat in Kana:takon

One day last fall, I let my dogs out into our fenced in backyard. It was a really nice fall day, so I decided to go outside with them. When they rounded the corner of the house and entered the yard, they spotted something in the far end of the yard. Howling, they both took off after whatever it was. When I got to the corner of the house, I saw it, too! It looked like a big fluffed up brownish house cat. I had a 32 pound cat once, and it was about her size. It was in a crouched position on top of the lower gate. It  just sat there looking at the two dogs. I called to the dogs, because, since it did not run away, I was afraid it could possibly be rabid, and or maybe it was planning to jump on one of the dogs.  I hollered for the dogs to come to me but, of course they didn’t listen. Just then that cat let out a cry and a growl that sounded just like a mountain lions. When they heard that cat, then my two dogs turned tail and ran to me as fast as they could. I realized then that the big fluffy cat on the gate was not a Manx cat, it was a bobcat. After a few more growls aimed at the dogs, the bobcat jumped off the gate and took off and headed towards First Street. I was really surprised to see a Bobcat here in Kana:takon. But then again, early last spring, late in the afternoon, a deer bolted up my fence line surprising my neighbor, my dogs, and me. It ran across Angus Thomas Memorial Rd. and headed down towards the river. So I guess nothing should really surprise me anymore. I bet someone traveling on Akwesasne St. or Angus Thomas Memorial Rd. would have been very surprised if they drove by at the right or should I say the wrong time and hit that deer.

The bobcat is nocturnal and elusive, so it is usually rarely seen, but it also can adapt to even suburban areas where daytime sightings are more common. The Bobcat, Lynx rufus, is the most common wildcat in North America. It is named for its short bobbed tail. The Bobcat is usually about twice the size of a house cat. It is slightly smaller than its cousin the Lynx, but they are similar in appearance. Their coats vary in color from shades of beiges to browns and they have dark brown or black spots. The Bobcat is anywhere from 25 to 48 inches long and 17 to 23 in height. The males weigh 16 to 28 pounds, and the females weigh 10 to 18 pounds. Being carnivores, they are known to eat rodents, birds, bats, rabbits, and even adult deer. Bobcats were once found throughout North America from northern Mexico to southern Canada. In the mid 1900s their populations decreased greatly in midwestern and eastern states of the United States because of the value of its fur. However, in the 1970s international laws began to protect them. Today their populations are stable in most northern states and are reviving in many others.

The Bobcat’s habitat varies from forests and mountainous areas to semi-deserts and brush land. They especially like a habitat with dense vegetation and lots of prey. Bobcats are excellent hunters. They will stalk their prey with great stealth and patience waiting until the right moment to take a lightning fast leap (of up to 10 feet) to catch their meal. The females never share territory with other females. The male’s territories, however, will overlap. Territories are marked with scent. The males will mark a 25 to 30 square mile area, while the female will mark about five square miles as her territory. Each Bobcat can have several dens in its territory. One of the dens is its main den and the others are auxiliary dens. Their main den is usually a cave or a rock shelter, or it can be a fallen tree, a hollow log, or some other protected place. This den is also known as its natal den (birth den). Their auxiliary dens are located in less visited portions of their territory. These dens are usually brush piles, rock ledges, or stumps. These dens are known as their shelter dens.

Here in the northeast, kittens are born in the early spring. The litter can be one to six kittens. The kittens start eating solid food when they are about two months old. They begin to learn to hunt when they are about five months old. When they are eight to twelve months old their mother evicts them from her territory. They must be on their own. The Endangered Species Act requires the US Federal Government to identify species threatened with extinction, to identify the habitat they need to survive in, and to help protect both. The Endangered Species Act works to ensure the health of our natural ecosystems and to protect the legacy of conservation we leave to our children and grandchildren. Unfortunately, I do not understand their methods completely because when the endangered animal’s population recovers, it is taken off the endangered list. This also removes protecting their habitats (the lands where they need to survive on), which, as can be seen, in a short time puts those animals right back into an endangered state again.

As I have said so many times before, each beings role here on Mother earth has a duty. To lose even one of those beings can lead to destruction of all else. Scientists themselves do not know what role each being plays. Everyday something new is learned. Some things, are hopefully not learned too late. Our Haudenosaunee teachings tell us that this is so, and it is up to each of us to respect all other things and to follow our original instructions. I will close this article with some interesting facts about bobcats and some links. One is to an online 48 piece bobcat puzzle. I tried it and it was a lot of fun to do. The other is a link where if you scroll down a bit to where it says, “Hear a bobcat” , there you can listen to quite a few very interesting bobcat calls. You will see why my dogs ran away from that bobcat.

http://library.thinkquest.org/TQ0311684/jigsawpuzzlebobcats.html

http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/bobcat.html

FACTS:

1.) Bobcats can live up to 25 years, but most will live to be 12 to 15 years.

2.) The bobcat does not have a very good sense of smell.

3.) Bobcats can walk about four miles a day.

4.) Bobcats have five toes on their front paws, but because the fifth is raised high up on the foot, it does not leave a mark on the ground.

5.) Bobcats evolved from the Eurasian Lynx about twenty-thousand years ago.

6.) Bobcats found in the colder northern territories are generally bigger and have darker fur than the bobcats found in the south.

7.) Because of their adaptability they are the most successful predators in North America.

8.) Despite their small size, the bobcat can take down prey animals that are eight times their own weight.

9.) Bobcats stalk and ambush their prey. Their stealth allows them to sneak up on their prey and their long powerful hind legs generate a speed of 31 MPH enabling them to pounce on their prey.

10.) It is important to know the difference between the Lynx and the Bobcat as they are two distinct and different cats. The Lynx is longer legged and does not have stripes or spots.

11.) Melanistic, all black bobcats have been seen regularly in some parts of Florida. Some people called them and thought they were black panthers, but a live trapped black bobcat has proved the existence of the melanistic cats.