Mexican Bobcat
Encyclopedia
The Mexican Bobcat is a subspecies of the bobcat
, from the cat family Felidae
. The Mexican Bobcat is most commonly found in the Mexican
states of Sinaloa
and Nayarit
.
except for the tail, which is darker in color. Adults of this species
range from nine to thirty pounds. The coat color of this animal varies from light gray to reddish brown. The coat is covered in more spots than that of the northern species of Bobcat and has shorter, denser hair then its northern cousin. This species has the distinctive black stripes of fur on the forelegs and a black tip on the tail along with black tipped ears and a whiskered face. A tuft
of fur frames the animal's face.
, western Mexico, and southward from the Sonoran desert
. The creature is also found in the Mexican states of Sinaloa and Nayarit, as well as parts of Sonora
, Jalisco
, Durango
, San Luis Potosí
, Nuevo León
, Hidalgo, Morelos
, Puebla
, Tlaxcala
, Tamaulipas
, Michoacán
, Guerrero
, Veracruz
, and Oaxaca
. The Mexican Bobcat lives in a variety of areas, including forests, coastal swamps, deserts, and scrublands. The animals are nonmigratory and are territorrial. The territory of a male Mexican Bobcat may stretch for a few miles and overlap with several female bobcat and male bobcat territories. The female Mexican Bobcat's territory rarely overlaps with another female's territory.
s and eat rodents, jackrabbits
, Collared Peccaries
, birds, deer, and White-nosed Coatis. On occasion they will hunt snakes, lizards, and scorpions. They are solitary, nocturnal animals and are rarely seen by humans. The animals gather briefly once a year to mate. The Mexican Bobcat breeding
season can take place anytime during the year and is not strictly limited to spring. The female gives birth to a litter
of two to three kittens, which she raises on her own. The species generally lives for ten to twelve years.
, illegal trapping and shooting, and militarization of the U.S. - Mexico border. Although the Bobcat was added to the U.S. Endangered Species List
in June 1976, a delisting of the Mexican Bobcat species was proposed in 2003. An official proposition to delist the species was made a few years later, although the species still remains on the list.
Bobcat
The bobcat is a North American mammal of the cat family Felidae, appearing during the Irvingtonian stage of around 1.8 million years ago . With twelve recognized subspecies, it ranges from southern Canada to northern Mexico, including most of the continental United States...
, from the cat family Felidae
Felidae
Felidae is the biological family of the cats; a member of this family is called a felid. Felids are the strictest carnivores of the thirteen terrestrial families in the order Carnivora, although the three families of marine mammals comprising the superfamily pinnipedia are as carnivorous as the...
. The Mexican Bobcat is most commonly found in the Mexican
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
states of Sinaloa
Sinaloa
Sinaloa officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Sinaloa is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 18 municipalities and its capital city is Culiacán Rosales....
and Nayarit
Nayarit
Nayarit officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Nayarit is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 20 municipalities and its capital city is Tepic.It is located in Western Mexico...
.
Appearance
The Mexican Bobcat is the smallest of the bobcat subspecies and grows to about twice the size of a housecat. It is similar in appearance to the lynxLynx
A lynx is any of the four Lynx genus species of medium-sized wildcats. The name "lynx" originated in Middle English via Latin from Greek word "λύγξ", derived from the Indo-European root "*leuk-", meaning "light, brightness", in reference to the luminescence of its reflective eyes...
except for the tail, which is darker in color. Adults of this species
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
range from nine to thirty pounds. The coat color of this animal varies from light gray to reddish brown. The coat is covered in more spots than that of the northern species of Bobcat and has shorter, denser hair then its northern cousin. This species has the distinctive black stripes of fur on the forelegs and a black tip on the tail along with black tipped ears and a whiskered face. A tuft
Tuft
In the aviation field, the term tuft refers to a strip of yarn or string of varying length attached to an aircraft surface in a grid pattern and imaged during flight. The motion of these tufts during flight can be observed and recorded in order to locate flow features such as boundary layer...
of fur frames the animal's face.
Habitat
The Mexican Bobcat is found throughout Mexico, but primarily in BajaBaja California
Baja California officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Baja California is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is both the northernmost and westernmost state of Mexico. Before becoming a state in 1953, the area was known as the North...
, western Mexico, and southward from the Sonoran desert
Desert
A desert is a landscape or region that receives an extremely low amount of precipitation, less than enough to support growth of most plants. Most deserts have an average annual precipitation of less than...
. The creature is also found in the Mexican states of Sinaloa and Nayarit, as well as parts of Sonora
Sonora
Sonora officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Sonora is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into 72 municipalities; the capital city is Hermosillo....
, Jalisco
Jalisco
Jalisco officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Jalisco is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is located in Western Mexico and divided in 125 municipalities and its capital city is Guadalajara.It is one of the more important states...
, Durango
Durango
Durango officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Durango is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. The state is located in Northwest Mexico. With a population of 1,632,934, it has Mexico's second-lowest population density, after Baja...
, San Luis Potosí
San Luis Potosí
San Luis Potosí officially Estado Libre y Soberano de San Luis Potosí is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 58 municipalities and its capital city is San Luis Potosí....
, Nuevo León
Nuevo León
Nuevo León It is located in Northeastern Mexico. It is bordered by the states of Tamaulipas to the north and east, San Luis Potosí to the south, and Coahuila to the west. To the north, Nuevo León has a 15 kilometer stretch of the U.S.-Mexico border adjacent to the U.S...
, Hidalgo, Morelos
Morelos
Morelos officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Morelos is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 33 municipalities and its capital city is Cuernavaca....
, Puebla
Puebla
Puebla officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Puebla is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 217 municipalities and its capital city is Puebla....
, Tlaxcala
Tlaxcala
Tlaxcala officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Tlaxcala is one of the 31 states which along with the Federal District comprise the 32 federative entities of Mexico. It is divided into 60 municipalities and its capital city is Tlaxcala....
, Tamaulipas
Tamaulipas
Tamaulipas officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Tamaulipas is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 43 municipalities and its capital city is Ciudad Victoria. The capital city was named after Guadalupe Victoria, the...
, Michoacán
Michoacán
Michoacán officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Michoacán de Ocampo is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 113 municipalities and its capital city is Morelia...
, Guerrero
Guerrero
Guerrero officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Guerrero is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 81 municipalities and its capital city is Chilpancingo....
, Veracruz
Veracruz
Veracruz, formally Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave , is one of the 31 states that, along with the Federal District, comprise the 32 federative entities of Mexico. It is divided in 212 municipalities and its capital city is...
, and Oaxaca
Oaxaca
Oaxaca , , officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Oaxaca is one of the 31 states which, along with the Federal District, comprise the 32 federative entities of Mexico. It is divided into 571 municipalities; of which 418 are governed by the system of customs and traditions...
. The Mexican Bobcat lives in a variety of areas, including forests, coastal swamps, deserts, and scrublands. The animals are nonmigratory and are territorrial. The territory of a male Mexican Bobcat may stretch for a few miles and overlap with several female bobcat and male bobcat territories. The female Mexican Bobcat's territory rarely overlaps with another female's territory.
Lifestyle
Mexican Bobcats are carnivoreCarnivore
A carnivore meaning 'meat eater' is an organism that derives its energy and nutrient requirements from a diet consisting mainly or exclusively of animal tissue, whether through predation or scavenging...
s and eat rodents, jackrabbits
Hare
Hares and jackrabbits are leporids belonging to the genus Lepus. Hares less than one year old are called leverets. Four species commonly known as types of hare are classified outside of Lepus: the hispid hare , and three species known as red rock hares .Hares are very fast-moving...
, Collared Peccaries
Collared Peccary
The collared peccary is a species of mammal in the family Tayassuidae that is found in North, Central, and South America. They are commonly referred to as javelina, saíno or báquiro, although these terms are also used to describe other species in the family...
, birds, deer, and White-nosed Coatis. On occasion they will hunt snakes, lizards, and scorpions. They are solitary, nocturnal animals and are rarely seen by humans. The animals gather briefly once a year to mate. The Mexican Bobcat breeding
Breeding in the wild
Breeding in the wild is the natural process of animal reproduction occurring in the natural habitat of a given species. This terminology is distinct from animal husbandry or breeding of species in captivity...
season can take place anytime during the year and is not strictly limited to spring. The female gives birth to a litter
Litter
Litter consists of waste products such as containers, papers, wrappers or faeces which have been disposed of without consent. Litter can also be used as a verb...
of two to three kittens, which she raises on her own. The species generally lives for ten to twelve years.
Threats
Modern threats to the Mexican Bobcat are habitat destructionHabitat destruction
Habitat destruction is the process in which natural habitat is rendered functionally unable to support the species present. In this process, the organisms that previously used the site are displaced or destroyed, reducing biodiversity. Habitat destruction by human activity mainly for the purpose of...
, illegal trapping and shooting, and militarization of the U.S. - Mexico border. Although the Bobcat was added to the U.S. Endangered Species List
Endangered Species Act
The Endangered Species Act of 1973 is one of the dozens of United States environmental laws passed in the 1970s. Signed into law by President Richard Nixon on December 28, 1973, it was designed to protect critically imperiled species from extinction as a "consequence of economic growth and...
in June 1976, a delisting of the Mexican Bobcat species was proposed in 2003. An official proposition to delist the species was made a few years later, although the species still remains on the list.