What do you call a female bobcat?

What do you call a female bobcat? Well,we'll get to that. Let's start with this, because it makes so little sense. The Ohio Department of Natural Resources' Division of Wildlife calls the bobcat common, at least in one breath. In the next breath it states that, "It is very unlikely (for you) to see a bobcat in the wild." That doesn't sound very common, at least when compared to other "common" animals. Take a mallard duck for example. Mallards are common. If you go to a wetland that contains permanent water, then you are, inevitably, going to see a mallard. Heck, if you look closely in your flower beds, you might even see a nesting mallard. Mallards are, just plain and simple, common, and just for further reference, Canada geese are abundant … meaning that you can hardly avoid them (or their inconsiderate droppings.) But, if you go to bobcat habitat, which might include large woodlands and riparian corridors, then you should expect to see a bobcat or two but, of course, you don't see any. Now, there are several "common sense" reasons for this. 1.) Mallards are a prey species and not apex predators like the bobcat and, as such, there are naturally going to be more of them than, say, bobcats. And while population numbers are hard to obtain for this example, there are easily hundreds of thousands of mallards in Ohio, and only an estimated 500 bobcats. 2.) Mallards are animals that live, generally, in the open ... meaning they don't lay low and hide all the time. Bobcats, conversely, hide all the time. But wouldn't this make them uncommon? It could, but here's another dynamic. Before European settlement, bobcat numbers were in balance with the great forest that covered eastern North America. But because of the want for their fur, bobcats and many other mammals were unregulatedly trapped. Further, for fear of protecting livestock and children, the animals were shot. Moreover, the bobcat's need for large woodlands was eliminated as some 90 percent of the state's forests were chopped down. It is estimated that by 1850, the once-native bobcat was extirpated from Ohio. meaning that they no longer called Ohio home. Yet, 100 years later, as forests began to grow back and the thought of shooting bobcats on sight diminished, bobcats from adjoining states started to cross state lines and check Ohio out again, and they brought friends. And in-state mating started to take place and before you knew it, and without any formal reintroduction program, bobcats were once again a part of Ohio's resident wildlife. But confirmed sightings were rare -- really rare. Thus, Ohio listed the animal as endangered in the state. As the 2000s began, Ohio developed a bobcat sighting program to better determine the cat's status. In 2001, only a couple of bobcats were found and confirmed ... confirmed because they had a fatal interaction with a car. By 2009, about 100 sightings were accepted and only half of those were roadkills. As confirmed sightings went up, the cat's status needed to change, and it went from endangered to threatened and then to -- you guessed it -- common. But let's put common in perspective. Michigan has an estimated bobcat population of 12,000. Ohio has around 500. Further, Michigan has bobcat hunting and trapping seasons and Ohio has only had discussions. In the end, bobcats can rightfully be called common in Michigan and in Ohio they are common by little more than default. Confirmed Ohio bobcat sightings, though, show that the population is growing. But even here there's a bit of skewing found in the form of trail cams. Trail cams are now everywhere …and more and more cameras are catching bobcats. And bobcats are showing up in more and more places, including an April 17, 2026, sighting in the Cuyahoga Valley National Park. But here's the skewing. If trail cams were used decades before, would there have been increased sightings? And how would those sightings support what we are seeing today? But let's take a moment to give the bobcat its due because it is really an amazing animal. Most people know that bobcats are rather small wildcats, but the fact is that they are really small … averaging about twice that of a house cat in size and weight. Their scientific name is lynx rufous, which aligns it well with its northern cousin the lynx but not at all with its coloration. Bobcats can be sandy, tan, tawny, yellowish, brownish and sometimes rufous. They have lots of scattered spots, even on their much-lighter undersides. Their faces are unreasonably adorable and are highlighted by classic eye makeup surrounding their over-sized eyes; tall, frayed, ear tassels and a wonderfully tiny pink nose. They do have muttonchops, but not to the extent of a lynx. Their feet are large and their tail is not. Yet it flicks it with all of the exuberance of an excited tabby cat. They hunt at dusk and dawnand through the night and do so by ambush. Small mammals are their main meal, but birds, reptiles and amphibians add variety to their menu. And yes, they are not afraid of water. According to the Ohio Division of Wildlife's site, young are born after a two-month gestation and eight weeks later are able to fend for themselves. Still, they hang with mom until fall or winter. While making it through their first year is difficult, adult bobcats may push 10 years in the wild, if they look both ways when crossing a road! Male bobcats are, unsurprisingly, called bobcats. Female bobcats are called, well, they are also called bobcats. The "bob" part of the name comes from the "bobtail," which both male and female bobcats have. Of course, you could apply housecat terminology and call him a "Tom." But if you do that, then you would have to call her a "queen." I think she would go for that.