Overview

The bobcat is America's small wild cat — about twice the size of a house cat, with tufted ears, spotted coat, and a short 'bobbed' tail that gives it its name. Elusive and mostly nocturnal, bobcats patrol forest edge and scrub across most of the continental US.

A bobcat crossing a trail at dawn, or a flash of spotted fur in headlights, is a rare discovery — they're present in far more places than most people realise, but rarely seen.

Habitat

Bobcats range across the United States in forest, scrub, desert, and suburban edge wherever rabbits and rodents provide prey. They rest in thick cover by day and hunt at dawn and dusk, marking territories with scent and scratch marks on trees.

Countries found

Bobcat in United States

Interesting facts

01
Bobcats are named for their short 'bobbed' tail.
02
They are the most widespread wild cat in North America.
03
A bobcat can leap three metres to catch a bird in flight.
04
They are solitary — each adult maintains its own territory.
05
Their spotted coat breaks up their outline in dappled forest light.
06
Bobcat populations have rebounded across the US after decades of fur-trapping pressure.

Conservation status

LC — Least Concern

Bobcats are Least Concern and have expanded their range in the eastern US as forest has regrown. They remain legally trapped for fur in many states but populations are stable nationally.