Have you seen an abnormally large cat roaming around the forest and fields around Oakmont this week? Perhaps you thought it was a mutated squirrel or, even more likely, a stray dog. Both are wrong. It’s actually a local big cat called the bobcat. Bobcats are the only wildcat native to Massachusetts, with an estimated population of under 3,000.
Just this Wednesday, I was driving on S Main St. up to Alltown, and it crossed the street just 15 feet from my front bumper. Crossed the road and ran into the woods, heading straight towards the school. Then, just the next morning, it was spotted right outside the science wing, just strolling around the paths behind the building. “Kind of a cool thing to see on a random Thursday morning.” Said Junior Landon Matewsky about his class’s sighting.
New England bobcats are solitary, usually nocturnal predators known for their distinctive short, “bobbed” tail and tufted ears, weighing between 15 and 35 pounds. They inhabit forests and wetlands, with populations concentrated in young forests and areas with dense cover, such as swamps and rock ledges. Bobcats primarily prey on rabbits and rodents but will hunt other small animals, and they are the only wild cat species in New England, not posing a significant threat to humans.
So don’t worry, it probably won’t come after you if you ever come face-to-face with it.
Hopefully, it sticks around for a while because it’s a cool change from the basic squirrel, chipmunk, and the occasional deer. Or maybe it never shows up again—either way, still a pretty cool and random sighting at Oakmont.
