Indiana bobcats appear to be increasing in numbers due to conservation efforts and access to suitable habitat. That success has lead the state to authorize limited hunting of the elusive cats. The Indiana Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is working out details of the plan.
Indiana may be home now to about 1,000 of the cats and the Indiana Department of Natural Resources is considering rules changes for harvesting bobcats, also known as Lynx rufus.
According to Indiana media.
“Under Senate Bill 241, bobcats will become a huntable animal in Indiana beginning on July 1, 2024.
The bill gives the Indiana DNR until July 1, 2025 to adopt rules and license fees for bobcat hunting. (The apparent contradiction was not explained – Ed.)
The bill includes language with guidelines for licensing fees – beginning with Indiana residents paying $15 to take a bobcat.
According to the DNR, bobcats have been reported from almost every Indiana county but are most common in southern and west-central Indiana. A study conducted by the DNR in south-central Indiana revealed that bobcats are capable of dispersing up to 100 miles from where they were born.”
Bobcats are not in danger of extinction. There are perhaps one million living in most of the 50 states. They also live in Southern Canada and Mexico. California has an abundant populaton of bobcats which are now under conservation study.
Bobcats are a member of the lynx lineage. Canada lynx and bobcats are found in North America, Eurasian lynx and Iberian lynx are found in Europe and Asia. North American Bobcats typically weigh up to about 30 pounds. Canada lynx are slightly bigger. Lynx rufus eat animals as small as insects and as large as deer. Other items on the menu include snakes, birds and fish.
Although Indiana bobcats are now abundant enough to hunt they face many threats. They can be preyed on by a number of predators, especially when young. Construction and habitat destruction are threats. The cats ability to adapt helps mediate that threat. Bobcats are often victims to traffic collisions and they are vulnerable to poisons used to control rodents and insects.