"The Mexican Bobcat
—A Natural History Short Story"
By Ed Lusch
May 2003 Guadalajara-Lakeside Volume 19, Number 9

      The quail covey, about 19 in all, exploded upward and outward in all directions from their once secure desert sage cover. Soon after launching, the birds coordinated their flight and landed together a hundred yards or so from their original sagebrush-launching site. However, one quail failed to make the flight. Snared six feet up from the sandy desert floor in mid-eruption, it now lay lifeless and nearly denuded of feathers as a bobcat plucked away before commencing its morning snack. In the distance the quail covey settled down and began calling to a few missing stragglers, which soon—minus one—fluttered back to the group.
      A nice start to the dawn hunt, the bobcat arched its body, fully stretched, and gave its front paws and retractable claws a thorough licking before trotting on in search of more breakfast. Perhaps a jack rabbit or plump peccary would be next, but the Mexican bobcat is not picky; a rugged habitat precludes abundant prey, and all manner of critters from snakes and lizards to young Sonoran deer are on this cat’s menu. In a pinch even scorpions provide sustenance.
      The cat quickened its pace, feeling the coolness of dawn beginning to warm and knowing that by mid-morning the rising heat from a sweltering desert sun would force it to find a shady place to rest and nap before resuming the hunt at the advance of dusk. In mid-stride it plunged to a prone position, stretching its neck and head intently forward to better inhale an oncoming scent. Belly crawling forward 20 paces or so, it abruptly halted again to take the air.
      Something was out there and the cat crept forward anticipating a short but furious charge. It now spotted movement nearly within rushing range and stealthily inched closer. Twitching in excitement and unable to control stillness any longer, the cat shot forward in a catapulted blur of fur. It bowled into a coati mundi at full force, both animals tumbling in the desert sand and gravel.
      It might have been an easy kill and a full meal, but the coati was not alone. She had been traveling with a dozen other raccoon-like coati mundis and they all unhesitatingly charged in for the rescue. The bobcat burst free from the melee of claws, teeth, dust and fur escaping a near-death experience with a dozen incensed coatis in hot pursuit, a posse of coati mundis chasing Jesse James out of Dodge. Neither cat nor coati itching for a fight, the chase soon broke off, a cacophony of woofs, barks and snarls echoing in the bobcat’s ears.
      None the worse for wear, but exhausted from the encounter, the cat curled up at the base of a prickly pear cactus to rest and recuperate. After half an hour of rest the cat stretched its forelimbs, unsheathed its claws for another cleaning, and pranced off toward a jumble of rocks and scrub manzanita where it sensed its next meal might be waiting. This time, however, it boldly entered the rock maze without any attempt at concealment, hoping to panic some hiding creature into bursting from its hideaway. It appeared at first to be futile strategy but a rock marmot scrambling for its den was seized upon just inches from its crevasse entrance and safety.
      Against the bobcat’s ripping claws and flesh-puncturing teeth, the marmot’s struggle for life was mercilessly short lived. Here was a meal, which would satisfy the cat’s three to four pound meat requirement for at least the day. It pulled the lifeless mammal under a large over-handing boulder, quickly surveyed its surroundings and nonchalantly, almost reverently, began its feast of marmot.
      By now the desert sun was riding high overhead producing an oppressive heat. No creatures, save the vultures, ventured forth at this time of day. Having eaten half its prey, the bobcat yawned, arched its spine and lay down to nap away the heat of the day and to digest its meal. It would nap, wake up and clean itself on and off throughout the day until dusk rekindled its energy. Scraping bits of dead plants and twigs over its leftovers, the cat again set out into the desert landscape using its topographic memory to lead it to a small, shallow stagnant pool of water still remaining in the otherwise dry creek bed a few miles distant.
      No longer in its hunting mode, the bobcat quick-paced unerringly toward the tiny watering hole. It covered the distance quickly, abruptly halting once to sniff the tracks left by a pair of coyotes it did not want to encounter. Reaching the stagnant puddle, the feline cautiously approached the water’s fringe, daintily lapped, content in the muted light of a three-quarters moon.
      (Note: The Mexican bobcat and its three southern sub-species are found throughout Mexico but primarily in Baja, western Mexico and the Sonoran desert southward. As a species it is faring well in undisturbed habitat, but rural development and the illegal fur trade are threats to its existence.)

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