Bobcats occur in the sage belt, where they are most common in the broken country around washes and in brushy areas. Although bobcats and coyotes occupy the same general areas here, the habitat preferences of these animals seem to be different, with coyotes occupying the more open country. An indication of the hunting habits of bobcats is furnished by the occurrence of masses of prickly-pear thorns beneath the skin of the legs, particularly the forelegs, of three specimens trapped in the sage belt. These thorns probably were acquired while the bobcats foraged for woodrats or cottontails in the patches of prickly-pear, which are locally abundant in the sage belt.
On March 12, 1951, a small subadult female bobcat, trapped at 4000 feet in San Antonio Canyon, was found dead in the trap and had numerous deep cuts around its head and shoulders, and severe bruises on the right shoulder. The spacing of the cuts, and the tracks around the set, indicated that while held in the trap this animal had fought with a second bobcat that had inflicted the fatal wounds. It seems unlikely that the fight was caused by a male attempting to copulate with the female held in the trap, for the female was found to be carrying an embryo.
In Live Oak Canyon, in December, 1950, tracks and bits of fur indicated that a bobcat had killed and eaten a gray squirrel. Remains of cottontails were found in the stomachs of two bobcats. All six bobcats from the Pacific slope had nematode worms in the pyloric end of the stomach.
Two females obtained on March 12 and 19, 1951, each had one embryo approximately one inch long (rump to crown).
The following list gives the weight of each of the specimens from the Pacific slope of the San Gabriels.
Specimens examined.—Total, 8, distributed as follows: Los Angeles County: San Antonio Canyon, 4000 ft., 1; San Antonio Canyon, 3200 ft., 1; 4 mi. N Claremont, 1900 ft., 2; Thompson Canyon, 1800 ft., 1; 3 mi. NE Claremont, 1700 ft., 2; Little Dalton Canyon, 1500 ft., 1 (PC).
Table 12.—Weights of Lynx rufus californicus from the San Gabriel Mountains.
| sex and age | locality | date | weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| ♀ ad. | 3 mi. NE Claremont, 1700 ft. | January 20, 1951 | 18.8 lbs. |
| ♀ sad. | 4 mi. N Claremont, 1900 ft. | March 9, 1951 | 12.5 " |
| ♂ ad. | Thompson Canyon, 1800 ft. | January 15, 1948 | 13.2 " |
| ♂ sad. | 4 mi. N Claremont, 1900 ft. | January 26, 1951 | 11.3 " |
| ♂ ad. | 3 mi. NE Claremont, 1700 ft. | January 27, 1951 | 13.8 " |
| ♂ sad. | San Antonio Canyon, 4000 ft. | March 12, 1951 | 7.9 " |
| ♂ sad. | San Antonio Canyon, 3200 ft. | March 17, 1951 | 11.2 " |
Lynx rufus baileyi Merriam
Wildcat