Can a noninvasive camera trapping technique be used to monitor urban bobcats (Lynx rufus)?

Abstract

We examined the effectiveness of using digital game cameras to survey urban wildlife, utilizing bobcats (Lynx rufus) as a focal species. Bobcats display unique pelt characteristics that allow surveyors to identify individuals in a population through the detection of pelt characteristics. At two study sites in Tarrant County, Texas, we randomly selected and surveyed 60 camera trap locations from September 2013 to December 2014. From this, we identified 79 bobcat individuals from 376 bobcat trigger events. Cameras at our East site recorded higher averages of bobcat activity (averaged 6.21 bobcat trigger events per 100 trap nights), in comparison to the West site (2.82 bobcat trigger events per 100 trap nights). Furthermore, using digital game cameras, we were able to gather additional information on spatial and temporal activity patterns of these bobcat populations. This study illustrates the capabilities of cameras to effectively monitor urban wildlife for long-term monitoring--Abstract.