Wildlife Callers

Consistent bobcat calling success begins with field scouting and knowing what you are looking for.

After my last post on fox habitat and sign (see it here: http://tinyurl.com/ydxwgoa ), I was asked what to look for when pursuing bobcats and if Wildlife Callers would make a post on the subject (who would have thought that predator poo was so popular??).  I told the gentleman we would oblige as quickly as possible.  We hope all of our readers find this post helpful.

This post focuses on bobcat and cougar scat identification and we’ll make another post on terrain types in a later post.

Scott Francom - AKA Hyperwrx on the Internet

Veteran Arizona predator caller and friend Scott Francom of Gilbert, AZ and I made a trip to the field to collect some photos and data.  The photos that we collected were from the desert areas around Maricopa, Arizona, but the information is applicable anywhere you hunt bobcats.  The location we scouted was new to both of us, but using our knowledge of bobcat behavior we quickly located what we were looking for.

NOTE:  The sign that we found is applicable to any location – I have seen bobcat sign just like I’m posting here all over Arizona, British Columbia Canada, Sonora Mexico, Missouri, and many other places.  You don’t need to be in the AZ desert to scout for bobcats.

Below you’ll find several photos of what we found on our scouting trip.  In some of the photos of scat, you might see something that looks like seeds or vegetable matter in the them.  We verified that there were bone fragments and some sand attached to the scat, but all of the scat you’ll see here are nothing but fur and bone.  Remember that bobcats and mountain lions are meat eaters only – if you are looking at a scat with seeds in it, it’s not cat scat – keep looking.

I’ll start with the mother lode (pun intended):

Bobcat and Mountain Lion Litter Box (aka "Cat Toilet")

Many hunters & predator callers have heard of a “cat toilet” or “bobcat litter box”, but many guys tell me that they’ve never seen one.  The picture above is a good one, but not even close to the biggest one I know of.

This is a photo of the most concentrated area of scat on the edge of a dry creek bed.  The bobcats were using it as a travel corridor to and from a very rocky and brushy set of mountains.  There were bobcat “deposits” along this area for at least 100 yards.  Interestingly, there was also a mountain lion scat deposited right in the middle of this litter box area.

NOTE:  Bobcats and cougars travel the same routes over and over.  Scat piles are important territory boundary markers and in an area like this, there is a very good chance that several territories either meet or overlap.  The chances of calling a bobcat in this area are increased by the fact that more cats are passing through.

The next series of photos are closeup shots of bobcat scat that will aid in correct field identification.

Sun Baked Bobcat Scat

This was one of the older bobcat scats in the collection.  Note the way it has turned completely white.  This scat is all bones and fur – no seeds or plants.

Bobcat Scat - Shows Segmentation

Bobcat Scat - New and Old

Mountain Lion Scat Dropped in a Bobcat Liter Box

Preseason scouting is essential to consistent calling success regardless of the predator your seeking.  If your intent is to focus on a particular predator type, scouting for that animal will help eliminate the randomness of just calling and seeing what shows up.

Thank you for reading and subscribing to the free info on The Wildlife Callers Blog.  Stay tuned for more posts that will make your days in the field more productive, predictable, and enjoyable.

Best regards,

Mark Healy

mark@wilflifecallers.com