Distinguishing Features – Overall colouration, tawny brown above, dotted with numerous blackish spots along the midline of the back. Underside, whitish with dark spots. Short tail, blackish above and white below. Legs, tawny with blackish horizontal streaks. Prominent streaked ruff on cheeks extending below the jaw. Ears, short with dark ear tufts. Can be mistaken for a lynx but the bob cat has shorther legs and smaller feet.
Size
Male: .75 – 1.2 m (2.5 – 4.1 ft)
Female: .75 – 1 m (2.5 – 3.1 ft)
Habitat
Primarily in the southern areas of Northwestern Ontario. Prefers hardwood forests, brushy scrubland, rocky mountainous areas and sometimes the wooded outskirts of inhabited areas.
Diet
The bobcat is usually found anywhere where there is an abundant supply of snowshoe hares, the main element of its diet. It will also feed on smaller rodents, ruffed grouse, reptiles and insects. On occasion it will attack a smaller or injured white-tailed deer.
Notes
The bob cat’s short legs and smaller feet make it less adapted to deep winter snow than the lynx, restricting its range to the southern boreal forest. It is a solitary hunter, congregating only during breeding season when a number of males may compete for one female.