Where Do Bobcats Live? - Bobcats Location Explored

Bobcats are medium-sized wild cats who are found throughout every nook and corner of North America. People are often confused about their exact location in the North American region and raise the question that where do bobcats live.

Generally, it is a little bit difficult to know the exact bobcat location as bobcats exist all across North America from the northern landmarks of Canada to the southern region of Mexico. It is better to divide the bobcats into the eastern and western sides of the Great Plains to pinpoint the location. Some experts have also divided them into 9 different categories to deeply study bobcats’ presence in the region.

In this article, we are going to explain in detail the presence of bobcats in the various sectors of the North American continent.

Bobcats Location Where Do Bobcats Live — Where Do Bobcats Live?

Bobcat territory

There will be nothing wrong in saying that all of the North American regions are the territory of Bobcat. However, they prefer to live in a territory where there is an abundance of food resources, water resources, farmlands, semi-deserts, mountains, swamps, and forests.

They also like to reside in a very dense vegetation cover. In the northern parts of Canada, bobcats face very harsh cold climates and semi-desert-type regions in Texas and Mexico. There is a very wide difference in the home range of male and female bobcats.

On average, female bobcats have a home range of almost 7 square miles while the male bobcat’s home range could be as large as 22 square miles.

How do you know if you live near bobcats?

The Bobcat population is abundant in the North American region. Generally, it is difficult to pinpoint the exact location of bobcats. Bobcats are adaptable to various types of biomes and climates. It means that they can survive in both cold as well as warm climates.

Generally, bobcats live near water bodies like lakes, and rivers or places where there is an abundance of small mammals like rodents, rabbits, squirrels, etc. Thus, if you want to know if bobcats could be in your surroundings, you must check these factors which are suitable for the presence of bobcats.

What should you do if you live near bobcats?

If you think there might be any bobcats in your surroundings, then you should take some safety measures to save yourself and your property from damage by bobcats. In this regard, you must never let anything eatable by bobcats kept on the premises of your house as it could be attractive for bobcats.

Secondly, you should also not expose your expensive materialistic equipment like energy generators, cars, and other such things outside your house. These things must be properly covered if you do have not enough space inside your house and there is no other way than to keep this equipment outside of the house.

It is also recommended to never let your domestic animals like cats and dogs remain outside as bobcats could also come for them and injure or kill these animals. The same thing is applicable to infants, children, and babies in the house.

What should you do if you see a bobcat?

Bobcats are medium-sized wild cats and these cats don’t attack if they encounter human beings. Human beings must maintain a distance from bobcats if an encounter happens. If it seems like the bobcat is ready to pounce on you then you must make a lot of noises in all directions you seem possible.

It will scare them off. Some of the noises which are highly recommended are clapping by hands, banging by feet, and playing loud music or noise from your cell phone. One thing you must keep in mind is never to turn your back and run away from the scene as it could provoke the bobcats. You must face the bobcats from the front until they run away from the sight.

Where do bobcats live in the USA?

There is a very stable population of bobcats in the USA. It has been estimated that almost 1-2 million bobcats live in the different states of the USA. But it is very curious to know that bobcats live in all the states of the USA. Bobcats live in almost all the states of the USA except Delaware.

In some states, the bobcat population has been facing extinction due to the wide-scale clearance of forests and the draining of swamps. However, there is a very stable population of bobcats in the states like North Carolina, Florida, Washington, and Georgia.

In the states like Ohio, Indiana, and New Jersey, the bobcat population is being protected officially due to a large-scale reduction in the population of bobcats in these states.

Florida bobcat population

Bobcats have a special association with Florida state of the USA. People often ask this question do bobcats live in Florida? If they live how much is the population of a bobcat in Florida? It has been found that there is a huge abundance of bobcats in Florida.

According to Florida Game and freshwater fish commission, bobcats have been classified as fur-bearing game animals in Florida state. Indeed, the population of the bobcat is very stable in Florida and there is no threat of endangerment but is it not commonly allowed to hunt down and hunting activities are only allowed in specific months of the year.

Where bobcat population is decreasing in the USA

Overall, the bobcat population is very stable in the USA. Nevertheless, in some states of the USA, the situation is not ideal enough. In almost ten states of the USA, the bobcat population is decreasing very rapidly. Some states like New Hampshire and New Jersey have also enforced protection laws to maintain a good population of a bobcat. Mostly, there is a threat to the population of a bobcat in the states where they have to face very cold climates. On the other hand, you will find a very stable population of a bobcat in warmer states like Florida.

What other wild cats live in the USA?

There are many other wild cats other than bobcats who have adopted the USA as their natural habitat. The most prominent among these wild cats are jaguars, cougars, mountain lions, jaguarundi, Ocelots, and Canadian Lynxes.

prominent Wild cats that live in the USA — Prominent wild cats of the USA.

Jaguar

Jaguar is the biggest wild cat among these cats and it has been included on the list of endangered species. You might notice their presence in very few states like Arizona and New Mexico. These cats are not endangered due to less availability of food as they can hunt any kind of prey but due to many times more hunting of them.

Canadian Lynx

Canadian Lynx has a lot of resemblance with bobcats but these cats are slightly larger than bobcats and mainly reside in the states like Maine, Minnesota, Washington, Alaska, Colorado, and Idaho. These cats also come with very short tails like bobcats. They move from one area to another in search of their favorite food Snowshoe shares.

Ocelots

Ocelots are very rare cats and it has been estimated that there are 100 Ocelot species left in the USA. They have also been listed as endangered species in an upgraded list of endangered species act, 1972. However, these cats have a very stable population in Argentina.

Jaguarundi

There is very less information available about Jaguarundi and only a few people know about this wild cat. It is not very big but it is a Native American cat and only grows as long as 15 inches. They come with grey plus red coats on their body and are considered very agile and slender by their quick movements. These cats mainly reside in the states like Texas and Florida. It has also been reported that these cats have been facing extinction in Texas as only a few of them were spotted in the Border region only.

Mountain lions

Mountain lions have a very widespread presence throughout the USA. You can locate it in almost every state of the USA. However, they are present in very abundant quantity in 15 states including Florida. In some states of the USA, the population of these wild cats is also facing extinction.

Where do bobcats stay during the daytime?

Bobcat stay in the tree log during day time.

Bobcats are nocturnal as well as crepuscular animals by nature. That’s why it is extremely difficult to know the exact location of a bobcat during the daytime. They also like to have multiple dens in their local habitat. It means that these animals could be anywhere in the area.

They only sleep for 3-4 hours in the den and again plan for coming out at the beginning of dusk. Other than dens, you can also find bobcats in hollow trees or logs, rock crevices, and abandoned dens of other animals.

Do bobcats live in the group?

Bobcats are solitary animals by nature and it is extremely rare to see these animals in social groups. You will mainly see male and female bobcats together only during the breeding season. Bobcats are also very territorial by nature and these things also undermine the grouping of bobcats.

Frequently asked questions

Bobcats are nocturnal as well as solitary by nature. That’s why it is extremely rare to see these animals in the wilderness. Bobcats have very diverse and widespread habitats and they can easily adjust in areas like swamps, deserts, forests, and suburban areas. Bobcats also have a very large quantity of population in the USA. Despite all of these factors, it is extremely rare to see these animals in the wilderness.

Yes, bobcats are territorial by nature. They like to outline their home space with special scent markings. Male bobcats sometimes overlap their territory with other mammals but female bobcats don’t like to share their territory with other animals.

Yes, bobcats like to stay in the same area. They don’t like to migrate until they have to face some extreme conditions like harsh weather and scarcity of food. Sometimes, they shift from one territory to another for some time and come back when the conditions are again favorable for them in their previous habitat. Female bobcats only go as far as 6 square miles from their main den in search of food and never leave their permanent residence.

Conclusion

Bobcats have a very stable population throughout the North American territory. They also have very diverse and extensive habitats. Despite having these things, it is extremely rare to see these animals in the open area. You can only find these animals in special places like rocks, mountains, hollow trees, and crevices. In these places, they make their homes in such a way that they are not exposed to human beings and other predators.