Yesterday afternoon, two Bobcats came to prowl in my backyard. It was the grey shadow cast by the first cat that caught my eye.
Though my sons saw a Bobcat earlier this summer near the Salt Marsh Trail, I’d never seen one before. Like all wildcats, they do tend to be elusive creatures.
Just on the edge of the woods near the house, their large form with bobbed tail and ear tufts made them easy to identify not just by me, but also by my son and my friend Sybil who was visiting at the time.
Although I wasn’t quick enough to capture an image of the cats, I did manage to get some photos of their tracks.
Bobcats are supposed to be nocturnal but are known to hunt during the day in the winter. They are likely here to prey on the Snowshoe Hares that live in my yard among the Balsam Firs. I wonder if they’ll be back…
The drawing of the Bobcat, at top, was completed January 24th. Various stages of the drawing can be viewed at http://drawingconclusions.wordpress.com/2010/01/22/bobcat/
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How exciting! One of my favorite wild animals, and I’ve never seen one either. Thanks for sharing this.
Why Grandma, what big eyes you’ve made!
I like bobcats as long as they keep a little distance. I expect they are after the hares. It’s a hard world for small creatures. I wouldn’t like eyes like that fastened on me . . .
So kewl that you got the pics of the paw prints. I can’t believe how lucky we were to see them strolling along. It’s now one of those moments that I’ll treasure for a very long time.
Very cool – we have them here, but I’ve never seen one! Can’t wait to see the finished drawing – it’s beautiful already!
I’m sure you’ll capture a picture of it sooner or later. I’m sure the creatures know that your back yard is a safe place to hang out. 🙂
Oh my goodness this is incredibly exciting! Bobcats in the backyard!! I have seen one on our road, years ago. And Barry has seen them a couple more times. Isn’t it fun when we catch a glimpse of animals such as this in our yard? Right before I started this blog we saw a pine martin scurrying about near our woodpile. Of course it was gone before the camera was found.
wild cats always give me a thrill. love the ghostly paw prints.
Very exciting. We don’t get those fellows where I live. Raccoons are regular nocturnal visitors unless they are sick. Then we see the occasional one during daylight. Wonderful drawing. Piercing eyes.
Sometimes I find that “unfinished” drawings and paintings speak to me more directly than fully completed work, that the suggestions affect me more strongly than finished facts. Does that make sense? I like the bobcat’s eyes very much.
Here in Florida the first panther death of the season has occurred. Panthers are still on the endangered list, so their population is closely monitored.
Yousei, I think wildcats are a favorite among many people. I certainly find them intriguing.
Gerry, I am wary of them too. I wonder if hares and other small creatures lead the stressful lives we imagine they do. Hopefully not.
Sybil, I haven’t seen them since you were here. No new tracks… yet.
Thanks Cindy 🙂 I’m glad you liked it.
Juanita, it’s safe, but it’s still only a bit more than an acre. Some of these wild creatures require a whole lot of space to exist. There’s still lots of wooded land behind us but the subdivision keeps growing.
Kathy, whenever I see something through the window, I hesitate for a moment to get the camera, in case I might miss getting both a shot AND a better view of the animal. Of course, it would be best if I kept the camera closer to where I am in the house. I’ve never seen a pine marten. That would be very cool too.
Wind, ‘thrill’ is just the word for it 🙂
Bella Rum, years ago I had a sick raccoon in my yard during the day. Very sad. Last year I did see a mother with her brood waiting to cross the highway not far from here at dawn. I didn’t even think we had Bobcats in Cow Bay until recently.
Pamela, I read about that Florida panther. There are so few of them left. As yet, there’s no photographic proof that Eastern Cougars exist in Nova Scotia, though some people have sighted them. I think they’re a variant of the Florida panther.
As for unfinished drawings, I’m with you. Towards the end of his life, Michelangelo left many of his sculptures in an ‘unfinished’ state but felt that they were more complete than his earlier works. His critics, at the time, didn’t agree. By leaving something to the imagination, I think the viewer is allowed to bring more of their own interpretations to the subject.
[…] such as Snowshoe Hares in check. For photos of bobcat tracks, see my nature journal post Bobcats in the Backyard. Posted in Wildlife | Leave a Comment »Tags: bobcats, canada, felines, nature, nova scotia, […]
I love your artwork! It’s beautiful… better than a photo.. 🙂 I’m never very good at photographing the animal, but I have a couple of good bear track photos.
Thanks millhill. In field guides, I often find drawings more helpful than photos in helping me to identify a plant or animal. I don’t think I’d be able to take any bear photos either. I’d be too busy running in the opposite direction 🙂
Always, your posts are a joy.
I’ve never seen a bobcat in the wild! I have seen their paw prints in the mud in summer when we go blueberry picking. Never seen their prints in the snow.
Lynx and bobcats are very similar, especially in their winter coats.
Glad you like the posts Pyrit 🙂
Three bobcats were sighted this past week not too far from here. Lynx, I think, are more secretive and more confined to very deep woods. Apparently the lynx are only found in northern Cape Breton in Nova Scotia. But we have so many snowshoe hares here, that I wouldn’t be surprised if they made their way south.
Yes, and Lynx paw prints are fuzzier with their extra paw pad fluff.
[…] other reason why it was screaming so loudly. Was it proclaiming its territory? Coyotes and bobcats will both compete with foxes for food. Residential development in the area is likely encroaching […]
[…] the past year, bobcats have been sighted in Cow Bay. Although smaller than lynx, they will also prey on snowshoe hares, […]
[…] January 2010 I spotted two bobcats in the backyard. Besides this recent spotting on Green Bay Road, they’ve also been seen on Orion […]