The bobcat is a typical member of the cat tribe, and resembles the common domestic cat in many respects. It differs in size, being perhaps twice as large, has longer legs, a very short tail, and big feet. The Northwestern Wildcat is a rich rufous brown over the back, grizzled with black; paler on the sides; with white underparts splotched with black. The legs are barred with dark brown and black. The tail is dark brown above with black bars, the extreme tip and underside is white. The ears are slightly tufted, the side whiskers or throat ruff are conspicuous.
Specimens in park collection: Mounted specimen, Longmire Museum, Park Headquarters.
Bobcats are found in all of the United States, and northward into western Canada.
The Northwestern wildcat occurs in northwestern California, Oregon, Washington, and southwestern British Columbia. The cats are uncommon in Mount Rainier National Park, where their range is apparently confined mostly to the lower elevations near the southern and western boundaries.
Of all the wild creatures of the woods, the bobcat is perhaps the shyest. Many woodsmen of several years experience can count upon the fingers of one hand the cats they have seen, with the exception of those caught in traps or treed by dogs. Often it is only by observation of their tracks or sign that their presence is revealed. This is all the more remarkable when it is understood that like domestic cats, they hunt by day as well as by night.
Their habits are typically cat-like. They prey upon rodents and birds, and may occasionally kill deer, particularly fawns.
CANADA LYNX
Lynx canadensis canadensis Kerr
The lynx is like the bobcat in size and build, but is lighter in color, and may further be distinguished by the black tipped tail, longer ear tufts, more conspicuous side whiskers, and broad spreading feet.
Specimens in park collection: None.
The range of the lynx is principally in Canada, although it extends into northern Oregon in the Northwest, southward in the Rocky Mountains into Colorado, and as far south as Pennsylvania in the northeast.