Bobcats are Back

Weyrauch says that "bobcats are doing pretty well. They're recovering. And to their credit, they're very flexible. They're not super picky. But I think there is a potential lack of denning sites in some areas.”

Bobcats would naturally den in fallen old growth trees that were hollowed out. Since a county like Licking is covered in new growth trees, she is experimenting in creating den sites for the bobcat.

Weyrauch is an ecologist, conservation biologist, and bobcat lover. She teaches biology at Ohio State University Newark. When she’s not in the classroom, she’s out in the field. In 2015 Weyrauch and Andy Roberts started Project Wild Coshocton to explore bobcat population recovery in Coshocton and Holmes counties.

Over the past few years the program has expanded. Weyrauch and Roberts created four dens for the species in 2022 and are currently studying human reactions to the return of the bobcat. 

In Weyrauch's office, her walls are covered with pictures of bobcats. A children’s book, The Boy and the Bobcat, written by Weyrauch and wildlife photographer Dutch Gordon, sits on her bookshelf. Her love for these big cats is evident. But it isn’t just displayed through decorations in her office. It also shines through her devoted conservation efforts in Ohio.

“I'm interested in ecology. I like to use ecological information to try to do something practical with it. So that's where the dens came in. You have the food, but you don't have the house. Where are they going to live?” said Dr. Weyrauch. 

The initial emphasis of the project was to learn more about habitat requirements and the characteristics associated with bobcats living in certain areas. From 2018-2022 Weyrauch and Roberts conducted trail camera surveys in Coshocton County to study their occupancy patterns and interactions with other species. Weyrauch devoted a majority of her time to the study in its early days. It made her love for the species grow. 

“When the surveys were going on, we were here every weekend, and our field days would start at the crack of dawn [and last] until sunset. It was brutal. It was a lot of work. But I'm kind of anxious to start that up again. I miss it,” she says.

She still remembers the first photo she caught on one of her trail cameras. 

“It was foggy and you could barely make it out. But, yeah, I was like, ‘This is a bobcat.’”

Initially, they studied bobcat behaviors through trail cameras spread throughout the forest and data from local trail cameras that was shared with them. Weyrauch and Roberts went into the field at least once a week with students and volunteers to learn more about the return of the species. 

“During that period of time, we were collecting roadkill deer and taking them into the woods. We would cruise this road and find a deer and pull over,” she says smiling. “I could just do field work all day.” 

Some people are excited about the return of the bobcat for different reasons. Some aren't happy about it at all.

Local trappers and hunters have been advocating for a limited bobcat trapping season. A Facebook post from WTRF 7News reads, “Local homeowners are alarmed after a bobcat targets their livestock.” In response, many users comment in support of a bobcat trapping season in Ohio. 

Lois Carr says, “Best way is to use your right to bear arms and you will fix the problem.” 

“It’s time the ODNR put a season on them. More and more complaints every year of them. I think the population has grown from being extinct and they’re safe again in Ohio at least,” says Chase Thompson. 

Don Gayda replies, “Pew pew. Livestock killers are fair game.”

A local Facebook group called “Ohio Outdoorsman for the Management of Bobcats & Predators” also advocate for Ohio to legalize a bobcat trapping/hunting season. Various members comment and post in support of bobcat population control in the name of species protection. 

Under a photo of a bobcat feeding on a deceased deer Chris Skrant says, “They’ve been on the common list in Ohio for since 2014… let them trap!” 

These are just a few of the many posts complaining about the presence of bobcats and how this population boom impacts other species. 

Although bobcats are no longer on the endangered species list, Weyrauch still doesn’t see a hunting/trapping season as necessary. She believes that trapping the animals is cruel and hunting them is unnecessary given their populations only recently recovered, their territoriality prevents them from over-populating, and the fact that they aren’t eaten the way deer are after they’ve been hunted.

“That's a fear I have. That they could be imperiled again. I think it would drop their population down significantly,” says Weyrauch. 

In 2018, researchers at Ohio University were awarded a $250,000 grant to study the upsurge in bobcats, but before they had a chance to get halfway through their study, the Division of Wildlife proposed a trapping season on bobcats. While this proposal was ultimately denied, eager hunters are still a potential threat to bobcats. 

Some citizens express fear of the wild cat's return. Weyrauch explains that attacks on humans are rare, and there are no known fatalities. “You are more likely to be injured or killed by a lawnmower or taking selfies.”

Some worry about bobcats as a threat to their farms and homesteads, while others say they are a net benefit, controlling predators.

According to the ODNR, bobcats mainly consume mammals like rabbit, other small mammals, and deer, but "they may also consume other prey including insects, reptiles, amphibians, fish, and birds.