Bobcat Population On The Rise In Wisconsin

Wildlife experts say the number of bobcats in Wisconsin is growing.

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports officials from the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources gave the department’s board a bobcat update Wednesday.

Nathan Roberts is a furbearer — an animal whose fur is valued commercially — research scientist with the department. He says the secretive felines are hard to observe and track.

The department estimates northern Wisconsin had about 3,500 bobcats in 2016, compared to 1,500 bobcats in 1980. Roberts said the population in southern Wisconsin is unknown.

Experts say the growing bobcat population likely has been aided by the state’s regulation of bobcat harvesting through the implementation of a hunting permit system in 1980 in northern Wisconsin.

Roberts said he’s confident the bobcat population will continue to thrive with the current level of hunting under the department’s monitoring.