Area's rebounding bobcat population healthy and stable

Jan. 9—The shy and elusive bobcat, a native species once viewed as a pest and hunted to the verge of depletion from Pennsylvania's forests, has slowly rebounded and stabilized. Those lucky enough to even see a bobcat in the wild witness the results of proper game and forest management practices.

"The bobcat was heavily persecuted through much of the state's history," said PA.Game Commission Furbearer Biologist Thomas Keller. " At one point there were bounties on bobcats, and of course when most of the state was deforested, bobcats also suffered from that as well. So at one time we didn't have very many at all throughout the state, but once they were protected and the season was closed we started to see cats rebound."

Bobcat bounties were terminated in 1938, but the cats remained unprotected until they were classified as furbearers in 1970. After 30 years of protection the PGC reopened bobcat seasons in 2000 with a limited amount of permits issued by lottery and 58 cats were harvested that year. The lottery system continued until 2009, and afterwards the cat's population became so stable that permits have now become available in unlimited supply. Keller credits the cat's population increase to proper forest management occurring at the same time the 30-year ban on killing bobcats was in place. "As you close the season and they're completely protected, and you have all of this perfect habitat coming up, which when you have good regrowth in a forest, that early succession is where you have a lot of your basic bobcat food, which would be primarily small rodents: mice, shrews, voles, and so you have proliferation of food abundance at the same time as protection."

In 2021 PA. hunters and trappers purchased 20,477 bobcat permits and took 916 cats statewide. Furtakers in Wildlife Management Unit 2C, which encompasses all of Somerset Co., the southern portion of Cambria Co., and portions of Indiana, Westmoreland, Fayette, Blair and Bedford counties, harvested 64 bobcats, and those is WMU 2E, which includes northern Cambria Co., southern Clearfield Co., and portions of Indiana and Jefferson counties, took 62.

By comparison, WMU 2G in north-central PA. topped the harvest list in 2021 with 93. Of the state's 23 WMUs, 2C and 2E ranked 7th and 8th in harvests respectively. PGC models predict long term stability in the region.

"What we've seen over the long term is that bobcats have been slowly increasing—actually within the last couple years they've been very stable and slightly increasing, and we would expect that because over time eventually bobcats will fill in what suitable habitat is there," said Keller. "So that's what we've seen particularly in the 2C and 2E units: a stable population over a long term ten-year trend." Keller explained that the cat's fairly large range (6 to 20 miles) decreases with good habitat as they have all they need in a more concentrated area, but conversely increases with poor habitat.

The PGC uses a variety of methods to track furbearer populations, such as indexes that reflect harvests, as well as incidental catches (inadvertently trapping a cat while attempting to trap another species), and game warden surveys.

"Bobcats have occupied a good portion of that region (2C & 2E) and you're actually starting to see bobcats kind of creeping in towards Pittsburgh." Keller said. "Bobcats can be somewhat adaptable to human development."

PGC Game Warden Shawn Harshaw said that last year he received clips of bobcats captured on video doorbells from residents inside the city limits of Johnstown. "Even right downtown, there are bobcats right down there that people are sending me videos of and wondering what it is." He said that the region's bobcat population has stabilized after noticeably increasing since he began his career in 1992. "There's been a pretty good increase since then. But their populations are pretty stable. They're not really increasing or decreasing at this point— they're pretty much stable."

Harvest reports are required for successful hunters and trappers, and trappers are encouraged to report incidental catches to their local game warden, which is included in annual further surveys. "So not only do we survey our state game wardens, but we actually survey our trappers and furtakers— hunters that might be hunting for furbearers," said Thomas Keller. The PGC surveys annually a certain percentage of furtaker license holders and extrapolates data to assist with population estimates.

Furtakers may only keep one bobcat per year, and Keller warned, "They are very susceptible to over-harvest."

He stated that bobcats offers sportsmen a tremendous challenge. "As they move through the forest it's amazing how quiet and how fluid they can be." He added, "I would say that they are not easy to catch. A bobcat is very inquisitive. They don't have much fear of other things because they are one of the top predators in the woods." Next to humans, domestic dogs, and even coyotes, are key predators the cats must avoid, said Keller.

Rick Leventry of Conemaugh Township has trapped 17 bobcats in Pennsylvania in the past 20 years, half of which he has released. "I would say there are definitely more than there used to be." He traps in Bedford, Cambria, and Westmoreland counties, but spends most of his time trapping in Somerset Co. "I put a lot of miles on. Especially when I'm on vacation."

Leventry, who has garnered six "Top Lot" awards from the North American Fur Auction, said, "The hardest thing is finding them and pinpointing their locations. Actually, catching them with a trap is not that hard if you can get them to come in." Leventry locates bobcats by placing game cameras over venison scraps, scouring the woods looking for tracks in the snow and mud, and by asking deer and bear hunters about possible sightings.

He said that the cats respond well to eye attractors such as ribbons, CDs, and Christmas tinsel since their sense of smell is not as keen as that of a fox or coyote. "You have to know where to look for them, and if you find an area where there are bobcats they're usually there over the years because they're there for a reason."

Leventry has learned cats prefer the thick cover and rock formations like those found on Laurel Hill, as well as farming field edges, as each contain the small mammals that bobcats eat. Big timber is usually a good place he starts searching for the secretive cat.

Checking his traps daily in the predawn darkness despite any cold and rainy weather conditions, Leventry admits that finding a bobcat in one of his leg-hold traps is quite a thrill. "To me it's an adrenaline rush. It's very exciting."

Although bobcat trapping season ended Sunday, licensed furtaker hunters have until Feb. 1 to harvest a cat.