Bobcat home range?

[just4fun]

I'm new to bobcat hunting, during deer season, I saw a cat with three kittens.  My question is how for will they travel from their den with kittens the size of a house cat?  What kind of home range do bobcats have?

[Jerry Lester]

I've read a lot on the subject, and the ranges vary between writers by a good bit. I got fed up with reading so much, and decided to start figuring out things for my self about bobcats.

From my personal experience, and talking to trappers(a very good information source!), I've found that the male cats will generally range over a wider area than the females. The extent they travel will vary depending mostly on food, and terrain. If there's plenty of prey, and cover the range may be as small as 1 square mile even for a big mature male. With plenty of prey, and good cover, a female may range in an even smaller area.

From what I've learned, bobcats can stick pretty tight to as little as 1/2 square mile, or range over several square miles. A female with small kittens will generally stay within a small area untill the kittens can hunt for there selves.

The biggest thing in a hunters favor(here in SW Virginia anyway), is that just like house cats, bobcats tend to travel defined routes during their prowling. Even if the cat is ranging over a very large area, it'll eventually end up right back where you either saw it, or found it's tracks.

Good luck on hunting your cat! I've been after them pretty hard for the past several years, and it's proven to be the hardest animal I've ever tried to hunt. Nothing else even comes close to comparing to the thrill I get from hunting bobcats. Just as soon as our deer season(gun) goes out next week, I'll be wearing the mountains out, squealing like a wounded animal, and watching the bushes for a cat!

[Wynn]

From what I can tell, Bobcats simply follow the food. When they have hunted out a area, they will move on, eventually returning if the abundance of game increases or staying in a area for prolonged periods if their food source remains abundant. The cats around my home seem to disappear for a year at a time and then return as the quail and young, wild pigs they feed on return. On the other hand, we see the same cats over and over on the hunting lease which sustains a very large population of turkey, rabbit, shoat hogs and quail. I killed a large male two weeks ago on my deer stand and 35 minutes later, killed a nice six point Buck. This evening, a hunting buddy of mine killed another large male cat off the same stand. Both were quite healthy and had been living large on the turkey flock that frequents the deer feeder.

[just4fun]

Thanks for all the good information.  I have also read different information in magazines.

[muzzleblast525]

It appears they've all travelled to my deer lease in Jack/Young County in Texas.  Since the first weekend of November, we've killed 3, one guy saw one crossing the ranch road yesterday, one kid saw 7 near his deer feeder chasing mice, and I even got one on my digital camera.

[trappenjoe]

Well guys cats are the most predictable animal there is . picture a stocktank, one day a tom might go north for a day to another tank viset
with another tom (talk about some hunting or she cats) they always over lap other cats ranges. they will go back to the stocktank were they started
now going west repeating this you can lay a trap anywhere you have seen sign and with in a  week you 'll catch the same cat . How far do they travel
nobody knows. depends on habbittat and she cats . Where I ran my trapline she cats ran over a 2.5 mile circle and the tom might go 10 miles..
This is just my observation and I'm no scientist or expert....
Little Joe