”I found a dead bobcat a few weeks ago. The furry corpse couldn’t have been dead long. The joints were not yet stiff. It was a small female and likely did not weigh more that 18 pounds. She was about twice the size of a house cat. …
”I don’t know for sure what killed the bobcat I found, but it did afford me the opportunity to see this extraordinary creature up close. Her feet were huge for such a small animal. Each paw was the size of my palm. Her small triangular nose was pink. The markings around her face were black and white. The white faded to brown on her forehead and cheek ruffs and on the bridge of her short muzzle. Bright white remained on her underside. And she had those unique black ear tufts at the end of each ear . Even in death, I think she was one of the most beautiful animals I have ever seen. I ran my hand down her back and, though her black spotted coat was thick, it was surprisingly coarse. Right now her pelt would fetch $150 or more. I found a soft spot of earth under a piñon tree. I dug a hole, gently laid her down in it and buried her.”
— Mary Katherine Ray, Winston, NM (in Rio Grande Sierran, March/April 2004)
Ray also reports ”it is known that about 500 bobcats are killed statewide [in New Mexico] every year. What is not known is how many bobcats there are, whether this number is high or low by historic standards, and whether populations are stable or declining…. It is possible that, in some areas, furbearer numbers are being decimated. Yet unlimited killing is permitted year in and year out.”
I was moved enough by Ray article to transcribe it for the Web. The following articles are a little less, um, spiritual, but have some interesting data and a very different perspective. mjh
Cats of New Mexico By Larry Lightner
“I have eaten bobcat and found that it is not to my liking.”
Furbearer Survey Statistics 1980-2000 – New Mexico Game and Fish Department
As an example of how a low response rate can bias our furbearer harvest survey results, we can compare the furbearer survey results of bobcat with the number of pelt tags issued to hunters. Since it is a federal law to tag all bobcats harvested in the state, we know the actual harvest. In 1999-2000, survey results were that 386 bobcats were harvest. However, we issued 1059 pelt tags. This is almost a 3-fold increase. Between 1980 and 2000, we have recorded 9,537 harvested bobcats. However, we issued 32,405 pelt tags, this is more than a 3-fold increase! The bottom line is that the Department needs more trapper participation in the survey. If the discrepancy we are observing in bobcat harvest is applicable to all protected furbearers, and likely it is, we are severely underestimating harvest.
Currently, there is no bag limit on any furbearer species and mandatory tagging applies only to the bobcat. Without a mandatory tagging regulation on all furbearers, or limiting take, the only way the Department can accurately report harvest figures and manage the furbearer resource is with the help of the furbearer trappers of New Mexico. Some trappers have felt it an ethical responsibility to report their harvest to the Department and have filled out the survey for decades; we are indebted to those individuals. They truly are the backbone of our program.