IUCN / SSC Cat Specialist Group - Digital Cat Library |
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| Furbearer and Small Game Mammal Management Team, | |
| Management plan for bobcat in New York State 2012-2017 | |
| 2012 Full Book | |
Bobcats (_Lynx rufus_) are widely valued as a resident wildlife species in New York, although they are rarely seen in the wild due to their secretive behavior. All indications, including harvest trends, suggest that bobcats have increased in abundance here and in surrounding states, and observations have become more common in recent years. Based on analysis of harvest data, we estimate New York's bobcat population to be approximately 5,000 animals in areas where regulated hunting and trapping seasons have been in place since the 1970s. Estimates are not available for populations expanding into western and central New York. New York's Environmental Conservation Law (ECL) specifically authorizes trapping and hunting as a legitimate use of our wildlife resources. This management plan provides for this continued use of bobcats, while ensuring that harvest occurs on a sustainable basis. We will accomplish that through setting of appropriate seasons across the state, specifying allowable trapping and hunting techniques, and monitoring bobcat populations and harvests. We propose no changes to bobcat harvest opportunities for most of southeastern New York, where bobcat hunting and trapping seasons have extended from late October to mid February since the late 1970s. In northern New York, we propose some changes to create a uniform hunting and trapping season throughout most of eastern New York. We expect minimal additional harvest (less than 50 animals) to result from these changes because trapping conditions and access in this region limit trapper effort and success during the winter months. We also propose opening a limited (3-4 weeks) trapping and hunting season in central and western New York, where bobcat populations have recently become established. We expect this limited season to result in a harvest of less than 100 bobcats, which will allow for continued population growth. We will also cooperate with efforts to assess the feasibility of restoring bobcats to Long Island, where the species has been absent since the early 1800s. This management plan is the first in New York to provide direction and oversight for sustaining or enhancing the abundance, enjoyment and utilization of bobcats throughout New York State. The goal of this plan is not to reduce bobcat populations anywhere in the state, since bobcats cause few conflicts with human interests or activities. We expect our actions to maintain populations at or above their current levels in eastern New York, while allowing for continued population growth in central and western New York. Current annual harvests average about 470 bobcats per year, and we expect annual harvests to increase by less than 150 animals per year. We will monitor those trends closely and we will enhance our monitoring capabilities by instituting more robust surveys of trapper and hunter effort. We will adjust seasons in the future as needed if we see evidence of significant population declines in any area. Over time, we expect the statewide population to stabilize at 6,000-8,000 animals, limited more by inherent territorial limits of the species than by hunter/trapper harvest. Although this plan focuses on harvest opportunities and associated monitoring programs (because of the need to manage those activities carefully), we acknowledge the value that people place on observing bobcats or their sign, and simply knowing that bobcats exist as a component of natural ecosystems in New York. As noted above, we expect our proposed actions to maintain bobcat populations at or above their current levels throughout New York State. Beyond that, there is little that DEC or anyone can do to increase the likelihood of a chance encounter with a bobcat in the wild. Neither DEC nor the trappers or hunters of New York wish to exploit bobcats to the detriment of the population. Historically, trappers and hunters are among the first to recognize a downturn in populations of harvested game species. We will regularly engage hunters and trappers in central and western New York concerning their observations of bobcats. These and other informal observations, coupled with rigorous legal requirements for harvest reporting, will strengthen DEC's understanding of the population status of bobcat. Season changes enacted pursuant to the plan will be evaluated in five years, when the plan should be reviewed and updated as needed. |
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