The California Department of Fish and Wildlife completed the most comprehensive bobcat population survey ever conducted in the state, finding a stable population of roughly 62,000 animals.
The five-year study used GPS satellite collars, fecal DNA analysis, camera traps, and necropsies of bobcat carcasses to determine population size and health. Bobcat populations are distributed throughout the entire state except in major urban areas and portions of the Central Valley subject to intense agricultural production, the agency said.
Earlier statewide estimates from the 1970s and 1980s, which used less rigorous methods, estimated 61,000 and 74,000 bobcats respectively.
The findings show that bobcats are "incredibly adaptable and can live in just about any part of the state," said Rachel Roberts, a Senior Environmental Scientist and the CDFW's Statewide Bobcat Coordinator. They can inhabit almost any type of terrestrial habitat and are strictly carnivores that will eat almost any kind of meat. While the statewide population appears stable, various factors can cause local growth and decline, according to Roberts.
The study identified several notable patterns. Lower densities of bobcats were recorded in areas of major wildfire scars, where catastrophic fires create large swaths of land with little to no suitable habitat. More bobcats were found in higher elevation areas than expected.
The survey was mandated by the 2020 California Assembly Bill 1254, which made it illegal to hunt, trap, or otherwise take a bobcat except under specified circumstances including under a depredation permit. The law directed the CDFW to develop a bobcat conservation and management plan before bobcat hunting could again be considered. The CDFW expects to publish a draft conservation and management plan within 30 days, with a 30-day public and tribal review period to follow.
Most human-bobcat conflicts involve chickens that are either unprotected or housed in poorly secured coops, the agency noted.