bobcat

[catmando]

has anyone heard about the changes in the bobcat season? did they vote one way or the other yet?

[Critterslayer51]

I believe that vote is later in the month of april catmando...CoyoteJeff usually posts the game commission's news headlines the day they come out farther down the forum board....keep your eyes peeled

[bigben]

just got voted on.

ALL FURTAKERS HAVE OPPORTUNITY FOR BOBCAT, FISHER

After 10 bobcat seasons with a specified number of permits, the Board of Game Commissioners gave final approval to shorten the length of the overall bobcat season to three weeks (Dec. 18-Jan. 8 for hunting, and Dec. 18-Jan. 9 for trapping), and allow all licensed furtakers the opportunity to purchase one permit to harvest a bobcat in Wildlife Management Units 2A, 2C, 2E, 2F, 2G, 3A, 3B, 3C, 3D, 4A, 4D and 4E. This action formally eliminates the need for the agency to hold a public drawing for bobcat permits.

The Board also approved the creation of a six-day fisher trapping season (Dec. 18-23) and will allow all licensed trappers the opportunity to obtain a fisher permit and try to trap one fisher in WMUs 2C 2D, 2E and 2F.

“Following careful review of recent seasons and, in consideration of hunter and trapper input received, beginning with the 2010-11 season, we are using season length to regulate bobcat taking in specified WMUs,” said Carl G. Roe, Game Commission executive director. “All indications suggest that bobcat populations have increased significantly during the previous years.

“In order to continue to assess interest, participation, effort and harvest, we believe it prudent to retain a permitting process. However, we believe that we can offer an unlimited number of permits to allow each licensed furtaker the opportunity to harvest one bobcat in the specified WMUs.”


Additionally, the Board approved the creation of a limited, one-week fisher season, which was part of the Game Commission’s initial plans when it reintroduced fishers back in the 1990s.

“Through this limited season, we will be able to gather additional biological samples for demographic and genetic analyses,” Roe said. “Mandatory reporting, along with fisher permits, is needed to better assess participation, effort and harvest for this new season.”

Resident and nonresident furtaker license-holders, as well as combination license holders, are eligible to participate in both the bobcat and fisher seasons. Bobcat and fisher permits will be available through the agency’s license sale system for $6.70 each ($5 for the Game Commission, which is the same as the previous application fee; $1 for the issuing agent; and 70 cents for the license sale system operator).

[furbug]

A bad ending to something that was just getting good. They will become near extinct
in a few seasons.

[catmando]

i have mixed feelings about this, im curious to see how many are killed. this kinda killed my guiding money i count on but thats ok, it also will be fun just to go cat hunting with friends and anyone can pull the trigger, but im afraid walking through the woods will be like walking in a mine field with traps going off all over the place, we have a healthy cat population, i hope this dont hurt it, time will tell.

[uncle buck]

Not a biologist but I think that once mated the Tom does not want anything to do with the female bobcat... So if that be the case....never feel that bad if large quantities of Male (Tom bobcats are harvested).  Now if you see large quantities of females... Now you could worry a bit.
Again  since and I think this is correct...Bobcat males have nothing to do with the kittens then not so bad if hunters and trappers take more male cats then females...
Actually....The Tom might even come back and kill the young bobcat kittens??

[muttbuster]

You are correct Uncle Buck. The male does his thing and leaves the female to raise the young. Maybe that's where Ben Rapelisberger learned how to treat females. Ted Kennedy and Ben are real ladies men. Too bad he is still in  the NFL. Four women all say the same thing. Ben raped me. Seems like a pattern to me. If it's true, he needs to be in prison with Plaxico Burris and the rest of the criminal types in  the NFL. Sorry about getting off topic. It's amazing how similar some of our professional sports role models behave like animals.

[uncle buck]

Also many a cat will be saved because of the Holidays too... Probably hit more hard after Christmas then before... Especially by people like me who live in WMU that it's not legal to hunt them in.  Christmas parties,  family get to gethers and possible bad weather will impact bobcat hunting and trapping this time of the year.

[Hern]

Folks will plan 'time off' from work to harvest Bobcat. It's been that way after Christmas for years for Rabbits and Deer. Folks plan to flinklock hunt, so now they may set a few Bobcat traps or try to call a Bobcat while being at the cabin flinklock hunting.
In any event, It will be interesting to see the harvest numbers.

With all the debates on other sites, my take is the PGC must have some insight on Bobcat population and projected harvest numbers. PGC in no way wants to deplete the population and feels the new season, with more furharvesters, will balance population in a few years. Further more, the PGC can regulate future Bobcat seasons for a stable population, if this management move doesn't pan out.

[catmando]

i dont trust the pgc. my take on it is that it has nothing to do with management and more to do with increasing the sale of furbearer lisences by 300 percent, just like the extra turkey tags,endless doe tags,bear tags, that being said i think we will still have plenty of cats to chase

[Renny]

catmando -- Do you think all the traffic in your back yard is going to impact the cat population?

[catmando]

it will definitly affect the pop. in my own neck of the woods but over the whole state there should be plenty left for seed,  i will have more fun with it now instead of the pressure of guiding, over the years ive taken 75 people or so out cat hunting and trapping and every year i find some guys and thier buddies in the exact places i took them so ive already seen the cat pop. change over the years in my own little world,  i really dont think they can hurt the pop. too bad with only a 3 week season

[furbug]

I do not think it will hurt it one bit. After all we trust them to manage the deer herd, and many counties above I-80, a just over populated with deer.