SNOW HUNTER

Although the bobcat ranges across much of the United States and southern Canada, few humans ever catch a glimpse of this small predator. He hunts mainly at night but even during the daytime forays, he is wary of his human neighbors. Helping him to avoid the notice of mankind is the profusion of spots on his coat, a camouflage in the brushy terrain he inhabits. The bobcat is distinguished from his more northerly cousin, the lynx, by his dappled coat and by his smaller feet. Diminutive though he is, the bobcat is an efficient hunter, keeping populations of field mice, rabbits and squirrels in check. In "Snow Hunter" the first snow of winter has blanketed the forest floor beneath firs and pines. A young bobcat finds the tracks and trails of mice and squirrels easily - the actual prey not so easily. Black tufts on his ears help him listen for the faint stirrings of animals in this silent, snowy season.