Did you know bobcats live in Illinois? They were once nearly eliminated from our state, but their population has since recovered. They now live across Illinois, but they are most common in the southern half. Most of us have never seen a bobcat, and that’s because they are nocturnal and mostly active in the dark of night.
Bobcats look like a larger version of a pet cat, but they are about twice the size of our pets. They are called bobcats because they have short, bobbed tails unlike other wild and domestic cats. Another identifying feature is the tufts of fur they have at the tips of their ears. Like other wildcats, bobcats are fierce hunters, mostly eating small animals like rodents, rabbits and birds. They stalk their prey then pounce, biting it in the neck to catch it.