Some are raising concerns that Illinois bobcats are headed back to the endangered species list.
Jennifer Kuroda of the Illinois Bobcat Foundation says there may be only 5,000 bobcats in the
state. In the last 6 years, 1,800 of them were killed by hunters.
Permits to hunt bobcats are given out by lottery. Last year 7,000 hunters paid $5 a piece for a
chance to win one of 1,000 permits.
Kuroda said the Illinois Department of Natural Resources should publish precise data on the
bobcat population.
Story from Illinois Radio Network
First, Ms. Kuroda is citing data that was from a study years ago by SIU and the estimated population was for the southern third of IL. (Below I-64) Her comments would lead people to believe that bobcats haven’t reproduced during the time in question which we all know is false. They are cats! And we know how cats breed.
Secondly, the range of bobcats has expanded statewide. Reports of sightings, Including harvests, pour in from all over the State. The DNR and the USFWS are monitoring the harvest closely and, in fact, established a quota that they feel can be harvested without impacting the population. The latest studies, conducted by SIU and WIU indicate that the population is strong and the population continues to increase.
Lastly, Ms. Kuroda’s assertion that we shouldn’t have a season on bobcats until DNR has an actual count on the population is disingenuous. She knows there is no possible way to get an actual count of every bobcat in IL. Population estimates are gathered by various means with harvest, population densities for a defined area, and surveys are some of the primary methods.
My last thought is I question the author of this article and his bias. Why did he not reach out to the DNR who are charged with overseeing the management of the bobcat and all wildlife in IL and get their response? The lack of any response or counter to Ms. Kurodas’s assertions leaves suspect to the motives of this article.