Smith: When it comes to wildcats in Wisconsin, bobcats are king

Of the three wildcats native to Wisconsin, the bobcat is the smallest.

But don't let its roughly 20-pound size fool you.

Its a highly-skilled predator, capable of taking prey as large as adult white-tailed deer.

Its stealthy habits also make it rarely seen, even when they live in close proximity to humans.

And perhaps most impressively, it's a survivor.

Targeted by bounties and unregulated hunting and trapping as recently as 1970, the bobcat made it through.

Today, Wisconsin is home to a robust population of bobcats, said Nathan Roberts, furbearer research scientist with the Department of Natural Resources. 

The agency estimates 3,500 bobcats live north of Highway 64, while southern Wisconsin has a sizable number that is now being closely studied.

Enough is known of the species' distribution in the state for Roberts to unequivocally say bobcats are found in all 72 Wisconsin counties.

Evidence from the state's most populous and highly-developed county was provided Dec. 7 when a photo was taken of a bobcat in a yard in Whitefish Bay.

The image, captured in broad daylight, clearly shows an adult bobcat.

The confirmed sighting raises the prospect that right now, somewhere in Milwaukee County, a female bobcat – called a queen – is tending a litter.

When it comes to wildcats in Wisconsin, mountain lions are just visitors. And Canada lynx have been gone since 1992, according to records kept by UW-Stevens Point. 

Yes, bobcats are the modern-day kings of Wisconsin wildcats.

And they appear here to stay.

After the DNR provided protections in the early 1970s, bobcat populations increased statewide.

"Most people wouldn't know it," Roberts said. "Bobcats are extremely secretive and stealthy."

Roberts said he once went to place a GPS tracking collar on a bobcat that was secured in a trap, and even though he knew the location, he almost stepped on the animal.

The bobcat, known scientifically as lynx rufus, or red lynx, has reddish to tan fur, stripes on its face and mottled spots on its body. It's some of nature's finest camouflage.

The animal's common name comes from its short, or bobbed, tail, which is very helpful to differentiate it from the largest native cat in North America, the mountain lion. 

Roberts visited Milwaukee last Saturday to give a presentation on bobcats at Hawthorn Glen Nature Center.

The center, run by Milwaukee Public Schools, is now a sure site to see a bobcat thanks to a gift by Laurie Groskopf of Rhinelander.

Groskopf harvested a 25-pound male bobcat during the 2017 season in northern Wisconsin and decided to donate a full-body mount of the animal to Hawthorn Glen.

The bobcat joins other educational plant and wildlife displays in the Martin E. Schreiber building on the grounds.

Bobcat research is funded, in part, by a special application fee that was requested by Wisconsin's hunters and trappers to ensure science-based management of the species, Roberts said.

All state-issued permit holders are required to register their kill via the web or a 1-800 number within 24 hours of harvest.

Further, all bobcat carcasses must be physically registered. The process allows the DNR to document the sex and age structure of the harvest, and to determine reproductive and mortality rates in the population.

During the 2017 Wisconsin season 574 bobcats were killed and registered or reported with the DNR. The agency set a harvest quota of 702 and issued 1,230 permits that year.

Add it all up, and the system is designed to protect the population while providing harvest opportunities to the public, according to the DNR.

"Some people say the bobcat is doing well despite hunting and trapping," Roberts said. "I like to say it's doing well because of hunters and trappers and their cooperation."

In one leading example, dozens of trappers in recent years who've captured bobcats have notified the DNR and allowed the agency to place a GPS collar on the cat and release it.

It would be difficult, if not impossible, for the agency to trap that many bobcats. And the information gained from GPS-collared animals is priceless, Roberts said.

The DNR's work found about 75% annual survival of adult females; 70% is the benchmark for a growing or sustainable population.

The DNR has about 50 bobcats "on the air" now, Roberts said.

The high-tech equipment has helped biologists study behavior and habits of the secretive cats.

The heaviest bobcat Roberts has handled in Wisconsin weighed 42 pounds; most are closer to 20.

One of the keys to the species' survival and growth is its adaptability to habitats ranging from coniferous swamps in the north to oak savannah in the south. Its list of prey items is broad, too, from insects to mice to deer.

Toms have territories of about 25 square miles, queens about 15. 

Bobcat "kittens" are born from April through July. 

Last week, a GPS-collared female gave birth to a litter in a Wisconsin barn loft. The owners of the property didn't even know a bobcat was in the area.

Roberts visited the site and examined the kittens – five in all.

After about 4 weeks of age, the youngsters will begin to leave the den and eat solid food brought to them by the queen.

In July 2015 southeastern Wisconsin was abuzz over reports of the "Milwaukee Lion," a purported wild cougar or escaped exotic pet. The animal was never caught nor verified.

Television news crews and police officers were deployed to sites of reported sightings.

The entire time, the real star of the state's wildcat family, the bobcat, able to live quietly and compatibly with humans, was in our midst.